Development and characterization of a nanoemulsion formulation for transdermal delivery of itraconazole

Saba Mehrandish,1,* Shahla mirzaeei,2

1. Student Research Committee School of Pharmacy, Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences, Kermanshah, Iran
2. Pharmaceutical Sciences Research Center, School of Pharmacy, Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences, Kermanshah, Iran

Abstract

Introduction

Itraconazole (itz) is an effective antifungal drug for various types of dermal fungal infections. recent advances in nanotechnology have led to the development of nano-scale drugs and delivery systems to improve drug therapeutic effectiveness. since few drugs are effective after their topical application, due to the barrier function of the skin, colloidal systems have being widely explored as carriers to improve drug skin permeation. therefore nanoemulsion formulation of itz for transdermal drug delivery was developed and evaluated in the present investigation.

Methods

Different o/w nanoemulsion formulations of itz were prepared by sonication method using tween® 20 and span® 80 with different tween : span ratios (5:5, 6:4, 7:3, 8:2, 9:1) as surfactants, pg as co-surfactant, dmso as oil phase and water. thermodynamically stable nanoemulsions were characterized for morphology and droplet size. the in situ skin permeation studies were performed on franz diffusion cell using rat skin as permeation membrane. the in situ skin permeation profile of optimized formulation was compared with dry powder of itz.

Results

The results obtained in the present work show that itz nanoemulsion containing tween® 20, span® 80 with 9:1 ratio, pg, dmso and water, is a suitable carrier system for incorporation of itz and satisfies the best attributes for transdermal application with good particle size in the nano range; also significant increase in permeability parameters was observed in nanoemulsion formulations as compared to dry powder of itz. prepared nanoemulsion formulations are stable and safe for the transdermal delivery.

Conclusion

These results suggested that nanoemulsions can be used as potential vehicles for improved transdermal delivery of itz.however further, in vivo investigations are required to evaluate improved antifungal efficacy of itz.

Keywords

Itraconazole, nanoemulsion, transdermal delivery, antifungal drug