Zidovudine (AZT) is an antiviral drug with moderate solubility in water. It has limited application due to its short half life in vivo and consequent requirement for frequent administrations. To solve this problem, zidovudine loaded polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP)/stearic acid (SA)-polyethylene glycol (PEG) nanoparticles (PSNPs) were developed.The hybrid nanoparticles were prepared by emulsification-solvent evaporation method. The physico chemical characterizations of the PSNPs was done by dynamic light scattering (DLS), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and fourier transform infra-red spectroscopy (FT-IR). The in vitro release behavior and haemocompatibility studies were also performed. The in vitro cytotoxicity and cell uptake studies of the PSNPs were assessed in murine neuro-2a and HeLa cells. Our results revealed that the core shell PSNPs prepared from lipid and polymer led to significant improvement in cellular internalization. Therefore, it is envisaged that nanoparticles composed of lipid and polymer moieties may constitute a preferred embodiment for anti-viral drug delivery for use in HIV/AIDS therapy.
Keywords: Cellular uptake; Cytotoxicity; Drug delivery; Nanoparticles; Poly vinyl pyrrolidone.
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