For investigating a detailed pH dependence of the rLPE-St anchoring liposomes, 0.1 mL of the calcein (75 mM) contained liposome solution (pH 10.0) was added to a 2.9 mL of 100 mM phosphate buffer at the desired pH (8.5, 8.0, 7.5, 7.4, 7.0, 6.5, 6.0, 5.5, 5.0). The fluorescence of the released calcein was measured using a HITACHI F-2500 fluorescence spectrometer at a 488/520 nm excitation/emission wavelengths. The maximum release (100%) was achieved by the addition of Triton X-100 (0.5% final concentration).
The percentage of calcein leakage was calculated as follows: calcein leakage % = (F -F 0 )/(F t -F 0 ) × 100, in which F and F t represent the fluorescence intensity of calcein before and after the addition of Triton X-100, respectively, and F 0 represents is the initial fluorescence before the addition of lytic polypeptides.