A nano-liposomal carrier was prepared for the anti-inflammatory drug prednisolone acetate (PA). The drug showed remarkable loading in the nano-carriers. The drug-loaded nano-liposmes with average sizes of about 186 nm and zeta potentials of -20 mV were obtained. Our drug release studies showed an apparently zero-order trend with only 18% of the drug released in the first 120 h. Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) analyses showed no chemical interaction between the drug and carrier. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) imaging showed near-spherical drug-containing nano-carriers. The intramuscular (IM) trial of the nanoformulation compared with the free drug showed both pharmacokinetic (lower Cmax, higher area under the curve (AUC)) and pharmacodynamic (higher and longer lasting anti-inflammatory effect, both macroscopically and biochemically) superiority for the nano-liposomal drug above the free prednisolone in rats.
Keywords: Nano-liposomes; pharmacodynamic evaluation; pharmacokinetic evaluation; prednisolone; slow-release.