The aim of the present study was to prepare
luteinizing-hormone releasing hormone (
LHRH) nanoliposomal
microbubbles specifically targeting
ovarian cancer cells. The lyophilization/sonication method was used to prepare non-targeting nanoliposomal
microbubbles (N-N-Mbs). Using the
biotin-
avidin bridge method, conjugated
LHRH antibodies to N-N-Mbs generated
LHRH nanoliposomal
microbubbles (
LHRH-N-Mbs) specifically targeting
ovarian cancer cells. The morphology and physicochemical properties of the
microbubbles was detected using an optical microscope and zeta detector. The binding affinity between the secondary antibody and
LHRH-N-Mbs or N-N-Mbs was determined by flow cytometry. The binding of
LHRH-N-Mb to human
ovarian cancer cells (OVCAR-3) was detected by light microscopy. The rounded and uniformly distributed N-N-Mbs and
LHRH-N-Mbs were successfully generated. The particle size ranged from 295-468 nm with a mean of 360 nm for N-N-Mbs or 369-618 nm with a mean of 508 nm for
LHRH-N-Mbs. There was a significant difference in size between the two groups (P<0.05), although the surface potential of the two
microbubbles remained the same (-14.6 mV). Following being kept at room temperature for 14 days, no significant difference in the physicochemical properties of the
LHRH-N-Mbs was detected compared with that of freshly prepared
microbubbles. The secondary antibody binding rate of
LHRH-N-Mbs and N-N-Mbs was 75.6 and 0.83%, respectively. Furthermore, the formation of a rosette-like structure surrounding OVCAR-3 cells was observed after the cells were incubated with
LHRH-N-Mbs, whereas pre-incubation with
LHRH antibody blocked this rosette formation. In conclusion,
LHRH-N-Mbs specifically targeting
ovarian cancer cells were successfully prepared through
biotin-
avidin mediation and the lyophilization/sonication method. The key feature of
LHRH-N-Mbs is their small size, stability and high efficiency in targeting human OVCAR-3 cells in vitro.