International Journal of Nanomedicine (Feb 2018)

Increased skin permeation efficiency of imperatorin via charged ultradeformable lipid vesicles for transdermal delivery

  • Lin HW,
  • Xie QC,
  • Huang X,
  • Ban JF,
  • Wang B,
  • Wei X,
  • Chen YZ,
  • Lu ZF

Journal volume & issue
Vol. Volume 13
pp. 831 – 842

Abstract

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Hongwei Lin,1,2 Qingchun Xie,1,2 Xin Huang,1,2 Junfeng Ban,1,2 Bo Wang,1,2 Xing Wei,3 Yanzhong Chen,1,2 Zhufen Lu1,2 1Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Advanced Drug Delivery Systems, Guangdong Pharmaceutical University, Guangzhou, People’s Republic of China; 2Guangdong Provincial Engineering Center of Topical Precise Drug Delivery System, Guangdong Pharmaceutical University, Guangzhou, People’s Republic of China; 3Guangdong Shennong Chinese Medicine Research Institute, Guangzhou, People’s Republic of China Aim: The aim of this work was to develop a novel vesicular carrier, ultradeformable liposomes (UDLs), to expand the applications of the Chinese herbal medicine, imperatorin (IMP), and increase its transdermal delivery. Methods: In this study, we prepared IMP-loaded UDLs using the thin-film hydration method and evaluated their encapsulation efficiency, vesicle deformability, skin permeation, and the amounts accumulated in different depths of the skin in vitro. The influence of different charged surfactants on the properties of the UDLs was also investigated. Results: The results showed that the UDLs containing cationic surfactants had high entrapment efficiency (60.32%±2.82%), an acceptable particle size (82.4±0.65 nm), high elasticity, and prolonged drug release. The penetration rate of IMP in cationic-UDLs was 3.45-fold greater than that of IMP suspension, which was the highest value among the vesicular carriers. UDLs modified with cationic surfactant also showed higher fluorescence intensity in deeper regions of the epidermis. Conclusion: The results of our study suggest that cationic surfactant-modified UDLs could increase the transdermal flux, prolong the release of the drug, and serve as an effective dermal delivery system for IMP. Keywords: ultradeformable liposomes, cationic, imperatorin, skin permeation, transdermal drug delivery

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