Title:Development of Lipid Nanocarriers for Tuberculosis Treatment: Evaluation of Suitable Excipients and Nanocarriers
Volume: 18
Issue: 6
Author(s): Gabriela Hädrich , Gustavo Richter Vaz, Raphael Boschero, Arthur Sperry Appel, Carina Ramos, Priscila Cristina Bartolomeu Halicki, Juliana Bidone, Helder Ferreira Teixeira, Ana Luiza Muccillo-Baisch, Alexandre Dal-Bó, Luciano Silva Pinto, Lea-Ann Dailey, Pedro Eduardo Almeida Da Silva, Daniela Fernandes Ramos and Cristiana Lima Dora*
Affiliation:
- Programa de Posgraduacao em Ciencias da Saude, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande, Rio Grande,Brazil
Keywords:
Biotechnology, drug delivery, nanobioscience, nanomedicine, pharmaceuticals, microbiology.
Abstract:
Background: Lipid nanocarriers have been widely tested as drug delivery systems to
treat diseases due to their bioavailability, controlled release, and low toxicity. For the pulmonary
route, the Food and Drug Administration favors the use of substances generally recognized as safe,
as well as biodegradable and biocompatible to minimize the possibility of toxicity. Tuberculosis (TB)
remains a public health threat worldwide, mainly due to the long treatment duration and adverse
effects. Therefore, new drug delivery systems for treating TB are needed.
Objective: Physicochemical characterization of different lipid-based nanocarriers was used to optimize
carrier properties. Optimized systems were incubated with Mycobacterium tuberculosis to assess
whether lipid-based systems act as the energy source for the bacteria, which could be counterproductive
to therapy.
Methods: Several excipients and surfactants were evaluated to prepare different types of nanocarriers
using high-pressure homogenization.
Results: A mixture of trimyristin with castor oil was chosen as the lipid matrix after differential
scanning calorimetry analysis. A mixture of egg lecithin and PEG-660 stearate was selected as an
optimal surfactant system, as this mixture formed the most stable formulations. Three types of lipid
nanocarriers, solid lipid nanoparticles, nanostructured lipid carriers (NLC), and nanoemulsions,
were prepared, with the NLC systems showing the most suitable properties for further evaluation.
It may provide the advantages of increasing the entrapment efficiency, drug release, and the ability
to be lyophilized, producing powder for pulmonary administration as an alternative to entrap poor
water-soluble molecules.
Conclusion: Furthermore, the NLC system can be considered for use as a platform for the treatment
of TB through the pulmonary route.