Authors Name:

Cameron Hogarth, Keith Arnold, Andrew McLauchlin, Steve P. Rannard, Marco Siccardi and Tom O. McDonald

Abstract:

A significant number of new chemical entities in the drug development pipeline are poorly soluble, therefore routes that facilitate effective administration is of considerable value. Lipid nanoparticles have proved an attractive approach for drug delivery; however, challenges that include optimising drug loading and understanding the impact of drug physiochemical parameters on nanoparticle properties have limited progression. In this work, we investigate the effect of modifying the log[thin space (1/6-em)]P of a model drug on the formation and stability of lipid-based nanoparticles. A range of model drug analogues with systematically varying alkyl chains were produced using a lamivudine (nucleoside analog reverse transcriptase inhibitor) scaffold and processed into lipid nanoparticles by nanoprecipitation. Characterisation included evaluation of particle diameter, size distribution, drug loading and nanoformulation stability. A distinct correlation with the LaMer model of nucleation was observed and log[thin space (1/6-em)]P appeared to strongly influence rates of nucleation. Model drugs with high log[thin space (1/6-em)]P were uniform in particle size and distribution and offered enhanced stability. In addition, various model drug/lipid blends were produced and their physical properties were investigated using dynamic light scattering (DLS) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). Complex mixtures of lipids were shown to influence formulation crystallinity and strategies to form uniform and stable lipid based nanoparticles of high drug loading- through manipulation of log[thin space (1/6-em)]P are discussed.

Journal:

Journal of Materials Chemistry B

DOI:

10.1039/D1TB02297K

Publication date:

2021-11-30

Link to article (if provided):