Title:Fabrication and Evaluation of Glabridin Tip-loaded Dissolving Microneedles
Volume: 18
Issue: 10
Author(s): Jianmin Chen*, Meixia Wang, Mengnan Ran, Xinying Liu, Siwan Liu, Zhipeng Ruan and Nan Jin
Affiliation:
- School of Pharmacy and Medical Technology, Putian University, Fujian,China
Keywords:
Glabridin, dissolving microneedles, drug delivery, skin lightening, safety, stability.
Abstract:
Background: The clinical application of glabridin in treating skin diseases has been constrained
by the limitations of its poor chemical stability and low skin permeability.
Objective: Here, we describe Tip-loading Dissolving Microneedles (TDMNs) encapsulating drugs
only in the tips of needles for glabridin delivery with improved stability and skin permeability.
Methods: The TDMNs fabricated by solvent casting technique had sufficient mechanical strength
to penetrate through the excised rat's skin without fracture. Drug delivery efficiency and drug residual
in the skin of TDMNs were 63.16% and 49.28%, respectively. Glabridin encapsulated in the
tips of TDMNs was effectively delivered into the abdominal skin of rat, and the in vivo delivery efficiency
was inversely proportional to the drug doses.
Results: Transepidermal Water Loss (TEWL) significantly increased to 34.80 g/m2·h after the application
of TDMNs and returned to normal levels (11.31 g/m2·h) after 8 h, indicating that the
TDMNs were well tolerated. The stability of glabridin at room temperature was appreciably improved
when loaded in TDMNs.
Conclusion: These results suggest that intradermal delivery of glabridin by TDMNs is a safe and
efficient alternative to currently available routes of administration.