Diclofenac sodium loaded liposomal gel for transdermal delivery: Formulation, characterisation and pharmacokinetic evaluation

Abstract

The transdermal route of drug delivery has many advantages for drug administration in local and systemic therapy. But, skin is widely recognized for its effective barrier properties compared to other biological membranes. The low permeability of the skin makes it a minor port of entry for drugs. The vesicular drug delivery is thus potentially beneficial as vesicles tend to fuse and adhere to the cell surface; this is believed to increase the thermodynamic activity of the drug at stratum corneum interface thus leading to enhanced permeation rate. These vesicles can act as drug reservoirs and modification of their composition or surface can adjust the drug release rate and/or the affinity of the target site. Among different carriers like liposomes, niosomes, ethosomes and transferosomes, represent a promising drug delivery module. The current research Aims to develop diclofenac sodium loaded liposomal gel for effective transdermal delivery. Diclofenac sodium is a highly lipophilic non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug. The Aim of the present study is to formulate and optimize Diclofenac sodium loaded liposomes by film hydration technique using HSPC as the lipid base and cholesterol as the stabilizer and then to carry out drug and excipient interaction studies (using DSC and FTIR) and pharmacokinetic evaluation of selected products on male Wistar rats and to evaluate the stability of the selected products as per suitable stability testing protocol following ICH guidelines.