Sodium alginate polymer nanoformulation as promising carrier for berberine delivery: Synthesis, morphology and in-vitro evaluation

Abstract

The present study focused on the fabrication of berberine sodium alginate nanoparticles with a combination approach of conventional nanoprecipitation method with ionic complexation to improve its poor water solubility. The optimization of nanoformulation was done by Central Composite Design and was evaluated for DLS, entrapment efficiency, morphology, FTIR, DSC, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antibacterial efficacy and drug release kinetics. The particle size of optimized nanoformulation was in the range of 20 nm to 100 nm with an entrapment efficiency of 94.47%. Antibacterial efficacy of optimized nanoformulation was checked by measuring the zone of inhibition for both gram-positive bacteria and gram-negative bacteria. The optimized nanoformulation showed enhanced antimicrobial activity compared with berberine and control nanoformulation against all bacterial strains. Also, a sustained release of berberine over about 48 h was achieved with nanoformulation and the drug release followed zero-order kinetics. Thus, berberine sodium alginate nanoparticles can potentially increase the oral bioavailability of berberine and can be utilized for controlled delivery thereby reducing the side effects.