The Structure of Degassed Water-Enabled Oil-in-Water Microemulsions*

Most anti-cancer agents are hydrophobic and their use on patients often requires an oil & drug delivery vehicle. The drug delivery vehicle tends to be the primary cause of side effects in patients. Growing evidence suggests that it may be possible to mix oil in water at higher concentrations if dissolved gases are removed from water. Understanding the structure of oil/water microemulsions could shed light on mechanisms of mixing. This project uses small-angle x-ray scattering, dynamic light scattering, and turbidity measurements to assess the structure of hydrophobic molecules mixed with degassed water. Results of nanostructure as a function of alkane molecule chain length and concentration will be presented. These results will be compared to the same measurements of biocompatible fatty acids. Determining the properties that enable their miscibility with an aqueous environment will be helpful for future drug delivery.