Microfluidic Mixing
Formulate reproducible LNPs with automation and scalability
Bring it all together
Lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) are driving innovation in the world of drug delivery because of their reliability as carriers for nucleic acids, their proven efficacy, and their excellent safety profile. LNPs form a layer around their payload, protecting it from degradation and aiding in cell uptake and release.
The lipid components of the formulation are chosen and dissolved in ethanol, and the nucleic acid payload is prepared in an aqueous buffer. Researchers then need a way to mix it all together. The performance of an LNP hinges on its size, shape, and structure, which is all affected by the mixing process. Striking the right balance is critical for payload stability, immune response modulation, and efficient endocytosis for intracellular release.
Microfluidic mixers, such as Unchained Labs’ Sunnies, use precisely engineered channels to encourage thorough, rapid mixing, and offer serious advantages over other production techniques due to their superior process control, ensuring consistent and reproducible particle production every time.
Lock and load
Load your formulation components into containers that make sense for your next step – in 96-well plate format for formulation screening, or syringes for process screening, or even bulk bottles to produce larger volumes.
Mix it up
Hook those input reagents up to your microfluidic mixing system and you’re ready to start cranking out LNPs.
Check out our microfluidic mixing guide here.
Find your conditions
Making changes to the flow rate ratio (FRR), the total flow rate (TFR), mixing chip or style, formulations or concentrations lets you optimize properties of your LNP, such as size, until you find the combo that’s right for your application.
You can use analytical methods like DLS or RADLS to check size and polydispersity and a payload-specific assay to look at encapsulation efficiency.
Excellent reproducibility
Once you’ve optimized your formulation and process, microfluidic mixing tools mean you can rest assured the results are reproducible, from <500 µL up to continuous manufacture.
Sunscreen
Finding the perfect LNP formulation can feel like it drags on forever. You need to figure out the best lipid mixture, the right lipid to payload ratio and the optimal flow rates to mix it all together. Worst of all, it’s usually done one experiment at a time. Sunscreen totally flips the script by creating 96 unique, small volume LNP formulations in less than 6 hours – so you can explore more formulations in a single day than you ever thought was possible.
Sunshine
Once you’ve found a rock-solid formulation, Sunshine helps you tune in your LNP’s size and design the perfect process to scale them up. Scout ideal flow rates, explore different mixing options, then dial in the right dilution factor to keep them stable. When you’ve got everything just right, Sunshine can shift into continuous mode, making tens of liters in a day. Get process development and scale-up on one platform — who would have figured?
Sunbather
Transferring your LNPs to GMP can be a costly, messy process. It usually means switching equipment, using a different flow path and mixer — basically a painful re‑development and re-validation of all your hard work. Sunbather makes the move to GMP a walk in the park with the documentation, replaceable flow path and easy transfer built right in. It uses the same mixing process and protocol as its Sunny Suite family members Sunscreen and Sunshine, so you can take your dialed in formulation into GMP without all the fuss.
More info
LNP researchers can now get automated, consistent LNP formulation screening with Sunscreen, development and scale-up with Sunshine and GMP ready manufacturing with Sunbather, using the exact same, transferable microfluidic mixing technology. Have a question or ready to find out more?