Cubic and hexagonal liquid crystals as drug carriers for the transdermal delivery of triptolide.

Cubic and hexagonal liquid crystals as drug carriers for the transdermal delivery of triptolide. Drug Deliv. 2019 Dec;26(1):490-498 Authors: Shan QQ, Jiang XJ, Wang FY, Shu ZX, Gui SY Abstract The purpose of this study was to develop and evaluate triptolide-loaded cubic and hexagonal liquid crystals for transdermal drug delivery systems (TDDSs). We prepared and characterized triptolide-loaded lyotropic liquid crystals and evaluated for their percutaneous permeation properties in vitro and in vivo. We then used the adjuvant arthritic rat model and HaCaT cells to analyze the pharmacodynamics and conduct cell-stimulating studies of these liquid crystals. The optimized preparations were identified as cubic and hexagonal phase structures, respectively. Moreover, the in vitro percutaneous penetration studies demonstrated that compared to the homemade triptolide gel, cubic and hexagonal liquid crystals could significantly increase the percutaneous cumulative penetration of drugs within 48 h. Besides, the results of skin-blood synchronous microdialysis showed that the triptolide concentration in skin was higher than that in blood, and the cubic and hexagonal liquid crystals significantly increased the bioavailability of triptolide. Triptolide-loaded cubic and hexagonal liquid crystals presented excellent anti-arthritic effects, alleviating paw swelling and inhibiting inflammation by downregulating the levels of TNF-α and IL-1β. In vitro ...
Source: Drug Delivery - Category: Drugs & Pharmacology Tags: Drug Deliv Source Type: research