Development of isradipine loaded self-nano emulsifying powders for improved oral delivery:in vitroandin vivoevaluation

Lipid Horizons: Recent Advances and Future Prospects in LBDDS for Oral Administration of Antihypertensive Agents

The lipid-based drug delivery system (LBDDS) is a well-established technique that is anticipated to bring about comprehensive transformations in the pharmaceutical field, impacting the management and administration of drugs, as well as treatment and diagnosis. Various LBDDSs verified to be an efficacious mechanism for monitoring hypertension systems are SEDDS (self-nano emulsifying drug delivery), nanoemulsion, microemulsions, vesicular systems (transferosomes and liposomes), and solid lipid nanoparticles. LBDDSs overcome the shortcomings that are associated with antihypertensive agents because around fifty percent of the antihypertensive agents experience a few drawbacks including short half-life because of hepatic first-pass metabolism, poor aqueous solubility, low permeation rate, and undesirable side effects. This review emphasizes antihypertensive agents that were encapsulated into the lipid carrier to improve their poor oral bioavailability. Incorporating cutting-edge technologies such as nanotechnology and targeted drug delivery, LBDDS holds promise in addressing the multifactorial nature of hypertension. By fine-tuning drug release profiles and enhancing drug uptake at specific sites, LBDDS can potentially target renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system components, sympathetic nervous system pathways, and endothelial dysfunction, all of which play crucial roles in hypertension pathophysiology. The future of hypertension management using LBDDS is promising, with ongoing reviews focusing on precision medicine approaches, improved biocompatibility, and reduced toxicity. As we delve deeper into understanding the intricate mechanisms underlying hypertension, LBDDS offers a pathway to develop next-generation antihypertensive therapies that are safer, more effective, and tailored to individual patient needs.

Self-nanoemulsifying drug delivery system (SNEDDS) mediated improved oral bioavailability of thymoquinone: optimization, characterization, pharmacokinetic, and hepatotoxicity studies

Thymoquinone (TQ) is an antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and hepatoprotective compound obtained from the black seed oil of Nigella sativa. However, high hydrophobicity, instability at higher pH levels, photosensitivity, and low oral bioavailability hinder its delivery to the target tissues. A self-nanoemulsifying drug delivery system (SNEDDS) was fabricated using the microemulsification technique to address these issues. Its physicochemical properties, thermodynamic stability studies, drug release kinetics, in vivo pharmacokinetics, and hepatoprotective activity were evaluated. The droplet size was in the nano-range (< 90 nm). Zeta potential was measured to be -11.35 mV, signifying the high stability of the oil droplets. In vivo pharmacokinetic evaluation showed a fourfold increase in the bioavailability of TQ-SNEDDS over pure TQ. Furthermore, in a PCM-induced animal model, TQ-SNEDDS demonstrated significant (p < 0.05) hepatoprotective activity compared to pure TQ and silymarin. Reduction in liver biomarker enzymes and histopathological examinations of liver sections further supported the results. In this study, SNEDDS was demonstrated to be an improved oral delivery method for TQ, since it potentiates hepatotoxicity and enhances bioavailability.

Nanostructured lipid carriers of isradipine for effective management of hypertension and isoproterenol induced myocardial infarction

The objective of the present paper is to formulate nanostructured lipid carriers (NLCs) of a calcium channel blocker, isradipine, to enhance its oral bioavailability and prolong its antihypertensive effect apart from evaluating efficacy of the formulation in isoproterenol induced myocardial infarction in rats. Formulation was optimized using quality by design (QbD)-based approach. Three factors i.e., total lipid concentration (%), homogenization pressure (bar), and number of cycles were optimized through Box-Behnken design to estimate their effect on critical quality attributes (CQAs) viz., size (nm), % entrapment efficiency, and in vitro % drug release which were found to be 80.9 ± 1.7 nm, 83.51 ± 2.15%, and 83.3 ± 3.86% after 24 h, respectively. In vivo pharmacokinetic study indicated 4.207 and 1.907 times increase in the oral bioavailability of optimized nanostructured lipid carrier without and with cycloheximide (lymphatic transport inhibitor), respectively. Treatment with ISO (isoproterenol) significantly diverges the levels of antioxidant marker, TBARS (thiobarbituric acid), and ultrastructure of the cardiac tissue indicating significant myocardial damage. Pretreatment of nanostructured lipid carrier of isradipine (ISD-NLCs) significantly prevented the antioxidant status and ultrastructural changes in the heart. In conclusion, this study confirms that optimized NLCs can substantially improve oral bioavailability of isradipine and presents a promising strategy in the management of hypertension for longer duration of time apart from demonstrating its preclinical efficacy in cardioprotection.

Lipid-based emulsion drug delivery systems - a comprehensive review

Lipid-based emulsion system - a subcategory of emulsion technology, has emerged as an enticing option to improve the solubility of the steadily rising water-insoluble candidates. Along with enhancing solubility, additional advantages such as improvement in permeability, protection against pre-systemic metabolism, ease of manufacturing, and easy to scale-up have made lipid-based emulsion technology very popular among academicians and manufacturers. The present article provides a comprehensive review regarding various critical properties of lipid-based emulsion systems, such as microemulsion, nanoemulsion, SMEDDS (self microemulsifying drug delivery system), and SNEDDS (self nanoemulsifying drug delivery system). The present article also explains in detail the similarities and differences between them, the stabilization mechanism, methods of preparation, excipients used to prepare them, and evaluation techniques. Subtle differences between nearly related terminologies such as microemulsion and nanoemulsion, SMEDDS, and SNEDDS are also explained in detail to clarify the basic differences. The present article also gives in-depth information regarding the chemical structure of various lipidic excipients, various possible chemical modifications to modify their inherent properties, and their regulatory status for rational selection.

Solid self emulsifying drug delivery system: Superior mode for oral delivery of hydrophobic cargos

A significant proportion of recently approved drug molecules possess poor aqueous solubility which further restrains their desired bioavailability. Poor aqueous solubility of these drugs poses significant hurdles in development of novel drug delivery systems and achieving target response. Self-emulsifying drug delivery systems (SEDDS) emerged as an insightful approach for delivering highly hydrophobic entities to enhance their bioavailability. Conventional SEDDS were developed in a liquid form which owned numerous shortcomings like low stability and drug loading efficiency, fewer choices of dosage forms and irreversible precipitation of drug or excipients. To address these curbs solid-SEDDS (S-SEDDS) was introduced as an efficient strategy that combined advantages of solid dosage forms such as increased stability, portability and patient compliance along with substantial improvement in the bioavailability. S-SEDDS are isotropic mixtures of oil, surfactant, solvent and co-solvents generated by solidification of liquid or semisolid self-emulsifying ingredients onto powders. The present review highlights components of S-SEDDS, their peculiarities to be considered while designing solid dosage forms and various methods of fabrication. Lastly, key challenges faced during development, applications and future directions for the research in this area are thoroughly summarized.

Improved Dissolution Rate and Intestinal Absorption of Fexofenadine Hydrochloride by the Preparation of Solid Dispersions: In Vitro and In Situ Evaluation

The objective of this study was to enhance dissolution and permeation of a low soluble, absorbable fexofenadine hydrochloride (FFH) by preparing solid dispersions using polyethylene glycol 20,000 (PEG 20,000) and poloxamer 188 as carriers. The phase solubility measurement for the supplied FFH revealed a linear increase in the solubility of fexofenadine with increasing carrier concentration in water (1.45 mg/mL to 11.78 mg/mL with 0% w/v to 30% w/v PEG 20,000; 1.45 mg/mL to 12.27 mg/mL with 0% w/v to 30% w/v poloxamer 188). To select the appropriate drug carrier concentration, a series of solid dispersions were prepared in the drug carrier weight ratios of 1:1, 1:2 and 1:4 by fusion method. The solid dispersions composed of drug carrier at 1:4 weight ratio showed highest dissolution with the time required for the release of 50% of the drug <15 min compared to the supplied FFH (>120 min). The intestinal absorption study presented a significant improvement in the absorption of drug from the solid dispersions composed of poloxamer 188 than PEG 20,000. In summary, the solid dispersions of FFH prepared using PEG 20,000 and poloxamer 188 demonstrated improved dissolution and absorption than supplied FFH and could be used to improve the oral bioavailability of fexofenadine.

Solid self-microemulsifying nutraceutical delivery system for hesperidin using quality by design: assessment of biopharmaceutical attributes and shelf-life

AIM

The present study endeavours to develop a solid self-microemulsifying nutraceutical drug delivery system for hesperidin (HES) using quality by design (QbD) to improve its biopharmaceutical attributes.

METHODS

A 3² full factorial design was employed to study the influence of factors on selected responses. Risk assessment was performed by portraying Ishikawa fishbone diagram and failure mode effect analysis (FMEA). The in vivo antidiabetic study was carried on induced diabetic rats.

RESULTS

The optimised liquid SMEDDS-HES (OF) formulation showed emulsification time (Y ₁) = 102.5 ± 2.52 s, globule size (Y ₂) = 225.2 ± 3.40 nm, polydispersity index (Y ₃) = 0.294 ± 0.62, and zeta potential (Y ₄) = -25.4 ± 1.74 mV, respectively. The solid SMEDDS-HES (SOF-7) formulation was characterised by FTIR, PXRD, DSC, and SEM. The shelf life of SOF-7 was found to be 32.88 months. The heamatological and histopathological data of diabetic rats showed prominent antidiabetic activity.

CONCLUSIONS

The optimised formulation showed improved dissolution, desired stability, and promising antidiabetic activity.

Quality by Design Enabled Development of Oral Self-Nanoemulsifying Drug Delivery System of a Novel Calcimimetic Cinacalcet HCl Using a Porous Carrier: In Vitro and In Vivo Characterisation

In this present research, work quality by design-enabled development of cinacalcet HCl (CH)-loaded solid self-nanoemulsifying drug delivery system (S-SNEDDS) was conducted using a porous carrier in order to achieve immediate drug release and better oral bioavailability. Capmul MCM (CAP), Tween 20 (TW 20) and Transcutol P (TRP) were selected as excipients. Cumulative % drug release at 30 min (Q30), emulsification times (ET), mean globule size (GS) and polydispersity index (PDI) were identified as critical quality attributes (CQAs). Factor mode effect analysis (FMEA) and Taguchi screening design were applied for screening of factors. The optimised single dose of S-SNEDDS obtained using Box-Behnken design (BBD) consisted of 30 mg of CH, 50 mg of CAP, 149.75 mg of TW 20, 55 mg of TRP and 260.75 mg of Neusilin US2. It showed an average Q30 of 97.6%, ET of 23.3 min, GS of 89.5 nm and PDI of 0.211. DSC, XRD and SEM predict the amorphous form of S-SNEDDS. In vivo pharmacokinetic study revealed better pharmacokinetic parameters of S-SNEDDS. The above study concluded that the optimised S-SNEDDS is effective to achieve the desired objective. Graphical Abstract.

Reconstitutable spray dried ultra-fine dispersion as a robust platform for effective oral delivery of an antihyperlipidemic drug

The current article highlights the application of spray drying technique to produce an ultra-fine powder encapsulating the antihyperlipidemic drug, atorvastatin calcium (ATV). First, ATV was dissolved in an emulsion formulation, and different carriers (pectin, alginate, chitosan HCl and hydroxypropylmethyl cellulose) in two concentrations (1.5 and 3%) were added. Then, these carrier-containing formulations were subjected to spray drying, whereby ultra-fine ATV-loaded spray dried emulsions were produced (ATV-SDE). The optimum formulation; ATV-SDE7 containing 3% w/w pectin was selected showing an obviously enhanced dissolution profile compared to the other used polymers which could be attributed to its lower ability to swell in acidic medium, resulting in faster drug diffusion into release medium. Thus, ATV-SDE7 was subjected to further characterization including; DSC, XRPD, SEM and flowability properties. In-vivo studies were conducted using high-fat induced hyperlipidemic rats. The optimum formulation depicted normal lipid profile showing significant reduction in the measured parameters at the end of daily oral treatment, compared to ATV marketed tablets and control hyperlipidemic rats confirmed by normal liver sections upon histopathological examination. The superior lipid-lowering activity of ATV-SDE7 was not only due to the enhanced dissolution of ATV but also due to the presence of pectin which is capable of lowering both cholesterol and triglyceride serum levels. Hence, the present study suggests that the formulation strategy employing ultrafine redispersible spray dried emulsion with pectin as a carrier holds a promising approach for the development of a novel dosage form of enhanced antihyperlipidemic effect for ATV.

Lipid-based dispersions of exemestane for improved dissolution rate and intestinal permeability: in vitro and ex vivo characterization

Current study aimed to develop lipid dispersions of poorly water soluble exemestane by employing lipid carriers such as Gelucire 44/14 and TPGS with porous calcium silicate (PCS) as an adsorbent carrier and formulate into a solid dosage form. The lipid dispersions at 1:5 ratio showed the highest solubility and dissolution compared to pure exemestane. Further, the ex vivo intestinal permeation studies showed improved apparent permeability (P_app, cm/s) of exemestane from the lipid dispersions (GLD_1:5 1.3 × 10^-2cm/s; TLD_1:5 1.8 × 10^-2cm/s) compared to pure exemestane (0.7 × 10^-2cm/s). The optimized lipid dispersions (GLD_1:5 and TLD_1:5) were evaluated for scalability to develop into capsules.