Cited by 92Advanced Drug Delivery SystemsDrug Solubulity and Delivery SystemsSurfactants and Colloidal Systems

Soluplus micelles for acyclovir ocular delivery: formulation and cornea and sclera permeability

Varela-Garcia, Angela, Concheiro, Angel, Alvarez-Lorenzo, Carmen·2018·International Journal of Pharmaceutics

Abstract

Nearly 20% of people affected by the herpes simplex virus (HSV) suffer from vision problems. The virus can infect all layers of the cornea or cause inflammatory diseases of the sclera. The aim of this work was to test whether encapsulation of acyclovir in Soluplus or Solutol polymeric micelles increases its solubility, corneal permeability and sclera penetration. The aqueous solubility of acyclovir is known to be low, and therefore approaches that increase both its solubility and ability to penetrate through the eye may favor the efficacy of the treatments. Copolymer dispersions (covering wide range of concentrations) were prepared in water and PBS 7.4 and characterized regarding size and Z-potential (close to zero). Solutol micelles increased their size when the drug was incorporated (135 vs. 19 nm), while Soluplus micelles showed little difference (137 nm). Only Soluplus micelles significantly enhanced acyclovir solubility and withstood dilution stability tests. Soluplus (12-20%) formulations showed a progressive increase in viscoelasticity as temperature rose, which may allow for easy dropping onto the eye and subsequent retention in the gel form. Drug permeability through bovine cornea and sclera was investigated in detail. Although similar permeability coefficients were recorded for the drug when applied as the free drug in solution or formulated in Soluplus micelles, the micelle formulation significantly shortened the permeation lag time through the cornea. Moreover, Soluplus micelles were advantageous compared to the drug solution in terms of greater amount of acyclovir accumulated in both cornea and sclera, and higher steady state flux. If compared with cornea, the amounts of drug permeated through the sclera were approx. 10 times greater, which opens the possibility of drug delivery to the posterior eye segment.

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Crossref · 10.1016/j.ijpharm.2018.09.053

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  • Soluplus micelles facilitated greater accumulation of acyclovir in both cornea and sclera, along with increased steady-state flux, compared with free drug solutions.

    “In contrast to free drug solutions, Soluplus micelles facilitated greater accumulation of acyclovir in both cornea and sclera, along with an increased steady-state flux [145].”
  • Soluplus micelles significantly consolidated solubility of acyclovir while sustaining stability under dilution conditions.

    “Soluplus micelles significantly consolidated the solubility of acyclovir while sustaining stability under dilution conditions.”
  • Soluplus micelles notably reduced permeation lag time through the cornea compared with free drug solutions.

    “Although analogous permeability coefficients were observed when comparing free drug solutions to those formulated in Soluplus micelles, the latter formulation notably reduced the permeation lag time through the cornea.”

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Authors
Varela-Garcia, A., Concheiro, A., & Alvarez-Lorenzo, C.
Venue
International Journal of Pharmaceutics
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2018-12
Volume
552
Issue
1-2
Pages
39-47
ISSN
0378-5173 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W2894230534
Cited by
92
References
45
Citations by year
2026: 2 · 2025: 16 · 2024: 7 · 2023: 10 · 2022: 15 · 2021: 11 · 2020: 18 · 2019: 13
FWCI
5.04
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
closed
Locations
  • International Journal of Pharmaceutics (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
Funders
  • MINECO (SAF2017-83118-R)
  • Agencia Estatal de Investigacion
  • FEDER
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Pharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutics › Pharmaceutical Science › Advanced Drug Delivery Systems
  • Life Sciences › Pharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutics › Pharmaceutical Science › Drug Solubulity and Delivery Systems
  • Physical Sciences › Chemistry › Organic Chemistry › Surfactants and Colloidal Systems
Keywords
acyclovir, Soluplus, polymeric micelles, ocular drug delivery, corneal permeability, herpes simplex virus, drug solubility enhancement, viscoelasticity
MeSH terms
Acyclovir, Animals, Antiviral Agents, Cattle, Chick Embryo, Cornea, Drug Compounding, Micelles, Permeability, Polyethylene Glycols, Polyvinyls, Sclera, Solubility, Stearic Acids, Drug Delivery Systems, Chorioallantoic Membrane, Administration, Ophthalmic

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