RETRACTED: Pluronic® F127 stabilized reduced graphene oxide hydrogel for transdermal delivery of ondansetron: Ex vivo and animal studies

Abstract

Ondansetron which is used to manage vertigo, nausea and vomiting suffer from the major limitations of low oral bioavailability (60 %) and short half-life (3-4 h), which affects the routine life style of patients (noncompliance due to multiple dosing). The present work aim to developed ondansetron loaded Pluronic® F127 stabilized reduced graphene oxide hydrogel (2 % Carbopol 940 base) as a promising transdermal delivery system, capable of sustaining and tailoring the drug release profile. The fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, raman spectroscopy, and X-ray diffraction reports confirm the attachment of Pluronic® F127 on the reduced graphene oxide. The scanning electron microscopy image showed the wrinkled and flattened nano-sheet surface with the presence of Pluronic F127 micelles. The hydrogel showed sufficient mechanical properties (texture analysis) for topical application. The ex vivo permeation data suggest that the flux decreased proportionally (due to π- π stacking interaction) with increase in the level of graphene oxide in the hydrogel, which indicate that the drug release rate can be tailored by changing the level of graphene oxide in the hydrogel. The high area under the curve, mean residence time and 2.89 fold increased in the bioavailability (rat model) suggest the potential of ondansetron loaded Pluronic® F127-graphene oxide hydrogel to sustain the release of ondansetron to manage vertigo, nausea and vomiting.