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The unexpected increase of clotrimazole apparent solubility using randomly methylated β-cyclodextrin
Bénédicte Pradines1, Jean-François Gallard, Bogdan I Iorga
1Institut Galien Paris Sud, UMR CNRS 8612, Université Paris-Sud, Faculté de Pharmacie, 5, rue J-B. Clément, 92296, Chatenay-Malabry cedex, France; BioCis, Biomolécules : conception, isolement, synthèse-Chimiothérapie Antiparasitaire, UMR CNRS 8076, Université Paris-Sud, Faculté de Pharmacie, 5, rue J-B. Clément, 92296, Châtenay-Malabry cedex, France.
Randomly-methylated β-cyclodextrin significantly enhances clotrimazole solubility by over 9980 times, offering a novel approach for drug formulation. This breakthrough surpasses previous cyclodextrin-based solubility improvements for clotrimazole.
Area of Science:
- Pharmaceutical Sciences
- Physical Chemistry
- Drug Delivery
Background:
- Clotrimazole (CTZ) is an antifungal agent with poor water solubility, limiting its therapeutic applications.
- Cyclodextrins (CDs) are known to improve the solubility of poorly soluble drugs through inclusion complex formation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the potential of various cyclodextrins to enhance the apparent water solubility of clotrimazole.
- To identify the cyclodextrin capable of achieving the highest solubility enhancement for clotrimazole.
Main Methods:
- Phase solubility diagrams were constructed to evaluate CTZ-CD interactions.
- Solubility of CTZ was measured in the presence of different cyclodextrins, including β-CD and hydroxypropyl-β-CD.
- Quantitative 1H-NMR, 2D NOESY, and molecular docking were employed to elucidate the inclusion complex structure.
Main Results:
- β-CD and hydroxypropyl-β-CD showed limited solubility enhancement for CTZ (12 and 384 times, respectively).
- Randomly-methylated β-CD (Me-β-CD) achieved an unprecedented 9980-fold increase in CTZ apparent solubility.
- Molecular interactions revealed that CTZ's phenyl groups had the strongest binding affinity with Me-β-CD.
Conclusions:
- Me-β-CD is highly effective in significantly enhancing the apparent water solubility of clotrimazole.
- The improved solubility is attributed to the specific interactions between Me-β-CD and the lipophilic parts of the CTZ molecule.
- This finding presents a promising strategy for developing improved clotrimazole formulations.
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