1. Introduction

Herein, we present an unprecedented yet simple, effective, scalable strategy for the fabrication of completely amorphous and highly sustainable hierarchical ceramide microcapsules for potential epidermal barrier based on the interpenetrating and cooperative self-construction of conical amphiphiles with a different critical packing parameter in the confined geometry of polymeric microcapsule (Figure 1).

2. Illustration of the fabrication of hierarchical amorphous ceramide microcapsules

The inherent concept which can construct the self-assembled hyperstructure of amphiphilic molecules depending on the molecular geometry is applied to the fabrication of the self-constructed amorphous architecture of ceramides in polymer microcapsule ^[1]. Notably, novel hierarchical amorphous ceramide microcapsule containing the interpenetrated cylindrical ceramide and conical sodium dilauramidoglutamide lysine (DLGL) as core materials could be facilely prepared in a large quantity using simple doping of DLGL amphiphile and subsequent in situ polymerization of PMMA shell in the core-shell geometry. The adaptive hydrophobic–hydrophilic interactions of cylindrical ceramides and conical DLGL amphiphiles enable an irregular cooperative packing structure inside the hierarchical PMMA microcapsule, thereby providing a completely amorphous morphology of ceramides during the spontaneous encapsulation process. In addition, excellent long-term durability of amorphous ceramide microcapsules with high dispersibility in the liquid media could be achieved compared to that of common crystalline ceramides.

Figure 1. Schematic illustration of the fabrication of hierarchical amorphous ceramide microcapsules for potential epidermal barrier.