Liposomes - What Are They?

Liposomes are artificially prepared vesicles enclosed within a Bilayer made up of phospholipids.

Because of the vesicle's ability to hold and protect anything from pharmaceuticals to skin care actives within its sturdy Lipid Bilayer, they can be used for delivering hydration and nutrients to the skin.

Phospholipids are a class of lipids that makeup the primary building blocks of cell membranes because they can form Lipid Bilayers.

Lipid Bilayers form naturally due to special properties of Phospholipids. The negatively charged phosphate group at the Head of the Phospholipid is easily attracted by the positive charge of the hydrogen in water. It is called hydrophylliic or "water loving"

The Tails of the Phospholipid are hydrophobic or "water fearing" and reject the charge of the water molecule when placed in an aqueous solution. They try to hide themselves against each other, shielding themselves within the natural barrier created by the hydrophylic heads. This reaction causes the phospholipids to form a bi-layered membrane which most often takes the shape of a sphere containing a vesicle. This is what is called A Liposome.