Preparation, characterization and in vivo evaluation of formulation of repaglinide with hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin

The therapeutic efficacy of repaglinide (RPG) is limited by the low and variable oral bioavailability owing to its limited aqueous solubility. In our present study, the development and evaluation of inclusion complex applying hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin (HP-β-CD) for the improvement of oral bioavailability of repaglinide was investigated systematically. The inclusion complex of repaglinide was prepared by lyophilization technique using drug: hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin (1:15 mole). The prepared complexation was characterized by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), X-ray diffractometry (XRD), NMR spectroscopy and evaluated by dissolution studies. The (1)H NMR was used in the structure study of repaglinide-HP-β-CD (RPG-HP-β-CD) inclusion complex. The analysis proved the higher probability of the repaglinide A-ring into the narrow rim of the β-cyclodextrin molecule. All the characterization information confirmed the formation of RPG-HP-β-CD inclusion complex. The in vivo pharmacokinetics of RPG-HP-β-CD and their physical mixture were performed in beagle dogs. For the first time, a simple, rapid, and sensitive LC-MS/MS method for determination of RPG in beagle dog plasma was developed. The Cmax and AUC0-t of RPG-HP-β-CD were 2.5 and 2 times higher than that of the physical mixture. These results suggested that the interaction of repaglinide with HP-β-CD could notably improve the dissolution rate and bioavailability of repaglinide comparing with its physical mixture.