Influence of Process Design on the Preparation of Solid Lipid Nanoparticles by an Ultrasonic-Nanoemulsification Method

Agata Pucek-Kaczmarek

doi:10.3390/pr9081265

Abstract

In recent years, lipid-based nanosystems have emerged as a promising class of nanocarriers for encapsulating many active agents. Solid lipid nanoparticles (SLNs) provide good stability (colloidal as well as physical) and high biocompatibility. Appropriate design of the carrier structure through a selection of components and preparation methods allows us to obtain formulations with desired physicochemical parameters and biological properties. The present contribution has been carried out to investigate SLNs containing biocompatible phosphatidylcholine mixed with non-ionic surfactant Tween 60 as stabilizing agents. The internal lipid phase consisted of glyceryl monostearate was confirmed as safe for drug delivery by the Food and Drug Administration. The SLNs were fabricated by ultrasonic-nanoemulsification method. The preparation process was optimized in regard to variable parameters such as ultrasonication time and used amplitude and number of cycles. The sizes of the studied nanoparticles along with the size distribution were determined by dynamic light scattering (DLS), while shape and morphology were determined by atomic force microscopy (AFM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The colloidal stability was measured by a turbidimetric method. The physical state of SLNs was characterized using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The obtained results indicate that the proposed SLNs may provide great potential for design and preparation of novel delivery nanosystems with a variety of possible applications.

Highlights

In the last few decades, lipid-based formulations have emerged as an attractive platform for encapsulating a number of active compounds that can be difficult to deliver on their own
The purpose of this work was to develop and optimize the ultrasonic-nanoemulsification method to obtain stable solid lipid nanoparticles (SLNs) based on components, which are safe for drug delivery
The results indicate that the produced solid lipid nanoparticles have a size which is suitable for both intravenous and oral delivery [24,25], since almost all of the samples presented diameter values in the range of 95–110 nm at the time of preparation (i.e., t = 0 days)

Summary

Introduction

In the last few decades, lipid-based formulations have emerged as an attractive platform for encapsulating a number of active compounds that can be difficult to deliver on their own. Solid lipid nanoparticles (SLNs) can be considered as one of the most promising carriers due to their multiple properties. SLNs are nano-sized water-dispersible colloidal system, similar to oil-in-water nanoemulsions, but their cores are composed of a biodegradable and physiologically tolerated lipid-based matrix that, unlike nanoemulsions, remains solid both at room and human body temperature [1]. The main benefits of SLNs include high biocompatibility and low toxicity, good stability, protection of encapsulated cargo against degradation, as well as improvement of the bioavailability of active components and the possibility of controlled/prolonged drug release. SLNs require inexpensive, organic solvent-free fabrication methods that are usually scalable [3,4]

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Conclusion