microencapsulation /mī′krō·enkap′syəlā″shən/ [Gk, mikros + en, in; L, capsula, little box] , a laboratory technique used in the bioassay of hormones in which certain antibodies are encapsulated with a perforated membrane. The antibodies cannot escape through the tiny perforations, but hormones that bind with the antibodies may enter the structure to bind with them. Technicians then can measure the amount of hormone present in the specimen. The technique is used for the encapsulation of unstable enzymes and in the preparation of some drugs in slow- or time-release forms.
