Ex vivo and in situ PLGA microspheres uptake by pig ileal Peyer’s patch segment

We investigated the ability of pig ileal Peyer’s patch segments to transport intestinal poly (d,l-lactide-co-glycolide) microspheres (PLGA MS) from intestinal lumen across the mucosae using in situ and ex vivo segments with confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM) and transmission electronic microscopy (TEM). From a global aspect, CLSM suggested that PLGA MS were translocated by M cells labelled with a FITC-conjugated anti-cytokeratin peptide 18, and transported through the follicle-associated epithelium (FAE) in the dome area in both types of experiments. At the ultrastructural level, TEM showed the traffic of PLGA MS throughout M cells, their transport into the basolateral invaginations of the M cells and their subsequent migration into the dome area and the follicular area in contact with macrophages and lymphatic vessels. Although in situ experiments allowed following the migration of PLGA MS until mesenteric lymph nodes, an ex vivo model could be used as a useful tool to study the targeting ability of PLGA MS formulations to the gut-associated lymphoid tissue (GALT).