Title:Hypothesizing the Oleic Acid-Mediated Enhanced and Sustained Transdermal Codelivery of Pregabalin and Diclofenac Adhesive Nanogel: A Proof of Concept
Volume: 24
Issue: 11
Author(s): Deepanjan Datta*, Afeefa Noor, Anjali Rathee, Snigdha Singh and Kanchan Kohli*
Affiliation:
- Department of Pharmaceutics, Manipal College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Manipal Academy of Higher
Education, Manipal 576104, Karnataka State, India
- Department of Pharmacy, Lloyd Institute of
Management and Technology, Plot No.11, Knowledge Park-II, Greater Noida 201306, Uttar Pradesh, India
- Department of Pharmaceutics, School of Pharmaceutical Education and Research, Jamia Hamdard, New
Delhi, 110062, India
Keywords:
Transdermal delivery, pregabalin, diclofenac diethylamine, permeation enhancers, organogel, pressure sensitive adhesives.
Abstract: Pregabalin (PG) and diclofenac diethylamine (DEE) are anti-inflammatory
molecules that are effective in relieving inflammation and pain associated with
musculoskeletal disorders, arthritis, and post-traumatic pain, among others.
Intravenous and oral delivery of these two molecules has their limitations. However,
the transdermal route is believed to be an alternate viable option for the delivery of
therapeutic molecules with desired physicochemical properties. To this end, it is vital to
understand the physicochemical properties of these drugs, dosage, and strategies to
enhance permeation, thereby surmounting the associated constraints and concurrently
attaining a sustained release of these therapeutic molecules when administered in
combination. The present work hypothesizes the enhanced permeation and sustained
release of pregabalin and diclofenac diethylamine across the skin, entrapped in the
adhesive nano-organogel formulation, including permeation enhancers. The solubility
studies of pregabalin and diclofenac diethylamine in combination were performed in
different permeation enhancers. Oleic acid was optimized as the best permeation
enhancer based on in vitro studies. Pluronic organogel containing pregabalin and
diclofenac diethylamine with oleic acid was fabricated. Duro-Tak® (87-2196) was
added to the organogel formulation as a pressure-sensitive adhesive to sustain the
release profile of these two therapeutic molecules. The adhesive organogel was
characterized for particle size, scanning electron microscopy, and contact angle
measurement. The HPLC method developed for the quantification of the dual drug
showed a retention time of 3.84 minutes and 9.69 minutes for pregabalin and
diclofenac, respectively. The fabricated nanogel adhesive formulation showed the
desired results with particle size and contact angle of 282 ± 57 nm and ≥120⁰,
respectively. In vitro studies showed the percentage cumulative release of 24.90 ±
4.65% and 33.29 ± 4.81% for pregabalin and diclofenac, respectively. In order to
accomplish transdermal permeation, the suggested hypothesis of fabricating PG and
DEE nano-organogel in combination with permeation enhancers will be a viable drug
delivery method. In comparison to a traditional gel formulation, oleic acid as a
permeation enhancer increased the penetration of both PG and DEE from the
organogel formulation. Notably, the studies showed that the use of pressure-sensitive
adhesives enabled the sustained release of both PG and DEE.Therefore, the results
anticipated the hypothesis that the transdermal delivery of adhesive PG and DEEbased
nanogel across the human skin can be achieved to inhibit inflammation and
pain.
