A calorimetric study on diflunisal release from poly(lactide-co-glycolide) microspheres by monitoring the drug effect on dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine liposomes: temperature and drug loading influence

IN VITRO RELEASE KINETICS MODEL FITTING OF LIPOSOMES: AN INSIGHT

Liposomes are emerging cargoes for bioactive delivery owing to their widely accepted biocompatible and biodegradable nature. It is always a challenge to control the release of payload for effective delivery to the site of interest. Over the couple of decennia, mathematical modeling of release process is a need of time whether the drug remains in the circulation or reaches at the target site. For establishing a better in vitro - in vivo correlation, release kinetics models viz. Peppas, Higuchi, Weibull, Zero Order and First order including mechanistic models like All-or-None, Toroidal, and Biomembrane models etc. are continuously exploited to predict drug release profile. Most of these models rely on the diffusion equations based on the composition of liposomes and conditions of release. Here, we summarized the crucial reports exploring these models and associated interventions to know the underlying physicochemical release phenomenon. Such mathematical model fitting can be a promising approach to deduce release/delivery process to help in designing the safe and efficacious ("Smart") liposomes.

Ferrocene-Modified Phospholipid: An Innovative Precursor for Redox-Triggered Drug Delivery Vesicles Selective to Cancer Cells

Controlled payload release is one of the key elements in the creation of a reliable drug delivery system. We report the discovery of a drug delivery vessel able to transport chemotherapeutic agents to target cancer cells and selectively trigger their release using the electrochemical activity of a ferrocene-modified phospholipid. Supported by in vitro assays, the competitive advantages of this discovery are (i) the simple one step scalability of the synthetic process, (ii) the stable encapsulation of toxic drugs (doxorubicin) during transport, and (iii) the selective redox triggering of the liposomes to harness their cytotoxic payload at the cancer site. Specifically, the redox-modified giant unilamellar vesicle and liposomes were characterized using advanced methods such as scanning electrochemical microscopy (SECM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), dynamic light scattering (DLS), and fluorescent imaging.

Interaction of resveratrol and its trimethyl and triacetyl derivatives with biomembrane models studied by differential scanning calorimetry

The interaction of resveratrol (trans-3,5,4'-trihydroxystilbene) and two of its derivatives (3,5,4'-tri-O-methylresveratrol and 3,5,4'-tri-O-triacetylresveratrol) with biomembrane models, represented by dimyristoylphosphatidylcholine (DMPC) multilamellar vesicles (MLV), has been studied by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The analysis of MLV prepared in the presence of increasing molar fraction of such compounds has been carried out to reveal their maximum interaction with biomembrane models. The results from these studies have been compared with kinetic experiments results, in order to detect the entity and rate of compound absorption by the biomembrane models. The findings indicate that the compounds affected the thermotropic properties of DMPC MLV by suppressing the pretransition peak and broadening the DMPC main phase transition calorimetric peak and shifting it to lower temperatures. The order of effectiveness found was resveratrol > trimethylresveratrol > triacetylresveratrol. The kinetic experiments reveal that in an aqueous medium the absorption of resveratrol by the biomembranes models is allowed, whereas the absorption of its derivatives is hindered; in contrast when a lipophilic medium is employed, all three compounds are easily absorbed.

Characterization of lipophilic gemcitabine prodrug-liposomal membrane interaction by differential scanning calorimetry

Gemcitabine is an anticancer agent rapidly deaminated to the inactive metabolite 2',2'-difluorodeoxyuridine. Its stability as well as bioavailability can be increased by making prodrugs. A series of lipophilic prodrugs of gemcitabine were synthesized by linking the 4-amino group with valeroyl, lauroyl, and stearoyl linear acyl derivatives. We studied, by the differential scanning calorimetry technique, and compared the interaction of pure gemcitabine and its prodrugs with dimyristoylphosphatidylcholine and distearoylphosphatidylcholine vesicles with the aim of demonstrating if the gemcitabine prodrug is more able than the pure gemcitabine to interact with lipid vesicles employed both as model biomembranes and as carriers in the transport of antitumor drugs. These studies, carried out by static and kinetic calorimetric measurements, give evidence that the increase of the prodrug's lipophilic character improves the interaction with lipid bilayers, favoring the absorption through the lipid barriers and allowing the liposomes to work (when the prodrug is inserted inside the vesicles) as a lipophilic carrier which is able to deliver the drug near the cell surface. The use of different prodrugs modified in their lipophilic character, of different kinds of vesicles (multilamellar and unilamellar), and of different kinds of vesicles forming phospholipids permitted us to determine the better equilibrium between in-vesicle solubility and through-vesicle diffusion of the drug, important in the preformulative studies of antitumor carriers based on phospholipid formulations. Such studies suggest that the prodrug lipophilic tail should modulate the transport and the release of gemcitabine inside the cellular compartments, and the efficiency of the liposomal system is related to the length of the prodrug's acyl chain which has to match the phospholipid acyl chain allowing or retarding the migration through the lipid release device.

A mechanistic study of the permeation kinetics through biomembrane models: gemcitabine-phospholipid bilayer interaction

The kinetics of the interaction between Gemcitabine (a new anticancer drug) and phospholipid membrane models was investigated. This kind of study is of particular importance both in hypothesizing the interaction of Gemcitabine with mammalian cell membranes and in evaluating the potentiality of liposomes as a Gemcitabine delivery system. Unilamellar (LUV) and multilamellar (MLV) membrane models were made up of dimyristoylphosphatidylcholine (DMPC), dimyristoylphosphatidic acid sodium salt (DMPA), or a DMPC-DMPA mixture (1:1 molar ratio). Gemcitabine-phospholipid vesicle interaction was studied by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) measurements performed at different time intervals. The findings showed slower permeation kinetics of Gemcitabine through MLV than LUV which, at the same lipid/water ratio, are characterized by a larger lipid surface in contact with the drug aqueous solution. Another interesting difference between LUV and MLV is the onset of a transient two-peak structure during the DSC scans of MLVs. The effect is due to the unequal distribution of the drug between the outer and inner bilayers of the multilamellar vesicles during the permeation kinetics. At equilibrium the two-peak structure merges into a unique peak. This finding may provide useful information about the lipid bilayer permeability in model membranes.

Recent Developments in Ring Opening Polymerization of Lactones for Biomedical Applications

Aliphatic polyesters prepared by ring-opening polymerization of lactones are now used worldwide as bioresorbable devices in surgery (orthopaedic devices, sutures, stents, tissue engineering, and adhesion barriers) and in pharmacology (control drug delivery). This review presents the various methods of the synthesis of polyesters and tailoring the properties by proper control of molecular weight, composition, and architecture so as to meet the stringent requirements of devices in the medical field. The effect of structure on properties and degradation has been discussed. The applications of these polymers in the biomedical field are described in detail.

Differential scanning calorimetry differences in micronized and unmicronized nimesulide uptake processes in biomembrane models

Nimesulide release from micronized and unmicronized drug particles was tested at pH 7.4 by measuring the transfer to dimyristoylphosphatidylcholine liposomes (multilamellar and unilamellar vesicles), chosen as a biomembrane model. The perturbing effect of increasing molar fractions of pure nimesulide on the thermotropic behaviour of dimyristoylphosphatidylcholine liposomes was investigated by differential scanning calorimetry. In order to study the drug dissolution process by its uptake into void liposomes, measurements were carried out on suspensions of blank liposomes added to weighed amounts of free powdered nimesulide (micronized and unmicronized). The amount of drug transferred was quantified by comparing the effect caused by the dissolved and released drug to that caused by the free drug that had been previously molecularly dissolved in the liposomes. The calorimetric results show that the dissolution rate depends on the nimesulide form (micronized or unmicronized), and that the transfer to the void liposomes is quicker when the drug is in a micronized form. The uptake was faster when unilamellar vesicles were used instead of multilamellar vesicles because of the greater lipid surface. The calorimetric technique could represent an alternative 'in vitro' method that can be applied to the study of the dissolution kinetics directly at the site of drug uptake, mimicking a biological system.

Role of lipophilic medium in the absorption of polycyclic aromatic compounds by biomembranes

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), before reaching DNA where they exert their activity, have to interact with the outer lipid layer of cell membranes and subsequently penetrate inside cells. Studying the interaction PAH-lipid membrane should be interesting in assessing the relevance of the medium in the absorption processes. A technique used to study such an interaction is differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) that detects the phase transition from an ordered to a disordered lipid structure, that can be affected by the presence of foreign molecules, when submitted to heating. Effects exerted by fluorene, fluoranthene and indeno(1,2,3-cd)pyrene on the thermotropic behavior of model membranes were here investigated. Aqueous dispersions of synthetic dimyristoylphosphatidylcholine (DMPC) were used as model membranes to study PAHs-membrane interaction. All the examined PAHs, dispersed in liposomes during their preparation, affect, to a different extent, the DMPC liposome transitional phase temperature. A study carried out by leaving powdered PAHs in contact with DMPC vesicles, shows that all three PAHs are almost unable to migrate through the aqueous medium. Instead, when PAH loaded liposomes were left in contact with empty ones, it appears evident that fluorene is able to migrate from a loaded membrane to an empty one. Also fluoranthene, although to a minor extent relative to fluorene, is able to migrate through the lipid environment. Indeno(1,2,3-cd)pyrene is less able to migrate through liposomes. The obtained data seem to validate the employment of the DSC technique in studying the ability of bioactive and potentially mutagenic compounds not only to interact with biological membranes but also to be adsorbed into a cell when dispersed in a lipophilic medium.

Calorimetric approach of the interaction and absorption of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons with model membranes

The ability of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) to interact with cell membranes outer lipid layer and subsequently to penetrate inside cells can be a prerequisite for exhibiting a mutagenic and carcinogenic activity. The effect exerted by pyrene, benzo[a]pyrene, and anthracene, three structurally similar polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons possessing mutagenic and carcinogenic activity on the thermotropic behavior of model membranes represented by dimyristoylphosphatidylcholine (DMPC) vesicles, was investigated by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The examined compounds, when dispersed in liposomes during their preparation, exerted a different action on the gel-to-liquid crystal phase transition of DMPC multilamellar vesicles. Pyrene and benzo[a]pyrene affected the transition temperature (Tm), shifting it toward lower values with a concomitant decrease of the associated enthalpy changes (AM). Anthracene does not significantly affect the thermotropic behavior of lipid vesicles for all tested concentrations. The interaction between PAHs and model membranes was also studied by considering the ability of such compounds as a finely powdered solid or adsorbed on soil surrogate (constituted by silica gel) to migrate through an aqueous medium. This transfer process was compared with the PAHs intermembrane transfer from PAH loaded liposomes to empty membranes. These processes can mimic absorption kinetics mediated by hydrophilic or lipophilic media. No interaction occurred between model membranes and solid PAHs. A very small effect was also observed for PAHs released by silica gel, suggesting that the migration and absorption are hindered by the aqueous layer and that their low hydrophilic character inhibits migration through the aqueous layer surrounding the multilamellar vesicles (MLV). Different behavior was observed by considering the time-dependent studies carried out by contacting, for increasing times, equivalent amounts of empty DMPC vesicles with PAH loaded ones; all compounds were able to migrate between the two different kinds of model membranes. Thus, PAHs are unable to reach and penetrate biological membranes migrating through an aqueous layer but, when dispersed in a lipophilic medium, are able to penetrate and diffuse inside a membrane. The obtained experimental results seem to validate the employment of the DSC technique in order to study the ability of bioactive compounds, not only to interact with biological membranes, but also to be adsorbed inside a cell when dispersed in a lipophilic medium.

Influence of different parameters on drug release from hydrogel systems to a biomembrane model. Evaluation by differential scanning calorimetry technique

A comparative study on the drug release capacity of four water swellable polymeric systems was carried out by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The polymeric systems chosen were alpha,beta-polyaspartahydrazide (PAHy) crosslinked by glutaraldehyde (GLU) (PAHy-GLU) or by ethyleneglycoldiglycidylether (EGDGE), (PAHy-EGDGE), polyvinylalcohol (PVA) crosslinked by glutaraldehyde (PVA-GLU) and alpha,beta-poly(N-hydroxyethyl)-DL-aspartamide (PHEA) by gamma irradiation (PHEA-gamma matrices). The degree of crosslinking for PAHy-GLU, PAHy-EGDGE and PVA-GLU samples was about 0.4 and 0.8. These hydrogels were characterized as free of drugs and were loaded with diflunisal (DFN) (approximately 2.5% w/w). Diflunisal, a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug, has been chosen as a model drug to be incorporated into polymeric matrices to follow the release processes of a drug from these hydrogels to a model membrane made by unilamellar vesicles of dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine (DPPC). Differential scanning calorimetry appears to be a suitable technique to follow the transfer kinetics of the drug from the controlled release system to the biomembrane model. The drug releases from all the considered polymeric hydrogels, were compared with the release observed from the drug solid form by examining the effects on the thermotropic behaviour of DPPC unilamellar vesicles. The release kinetics of the drug from hydrogels were followed at 25, 37 and 50 degrees C to evidence the influence of temperature on the drug release and on the successive transfer to biological membrane model. Particularly, it appears evident that the total amount of drug transferred and the release rate are affected by the polymer crosslinking degree (it increases with crosslinking decrease) as well as by the nature of crosslinking agent. In fact, the drug release profiles from PAHy-GLU samples are more differentiated than those from PAHy-EGDGE. The effect of parameters correlating with the properties of starting polymer, such as water-affinity, crystallinity, glass-to-rubber transition temperature and affinity towards drug molecules, has been also evaluated.