Novel Luliconazole Spanlastic Nanocarriers: Development and Characterisation.

Area of Science:

• Nanotechnology
• Dermatology
• Pharmacology

Background:

• Luliconazole exhibits poor skin permeation, limiting its topical antifungal efficacy.
• Spanlastic vesicles offer a strategy to improve drug delivery and therapeutic outcomes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To enhance the dermal delivery of luliconazole using spanlastic vesicles.
• To optimize spanlastic formulations for improved antifungal treatment.

Main Methods:

• Formulation of spanlastic vesicles using the ethanol injection method with Tween 80 as an edge activator.
• Optimization using a 2^3 factorial design, varying Span:Edge activator ratio, edge activator type, and sonication intensity.
• Characterization of entrapment efficiency, particle size, zeta potential, polydispersity index, and drug release kinetics.

Main Results:

• Nano-sized spanlastics achieved high entrapment efficiency (77-88%) and stability.
• In vitro studies demonstrated significantly higher luliconazole flux from spanlastic gel compared to conventional and marketed formulations.
• The optimized spanlastic gel exhibited enhanced antifungal activity against Candida albicans with a larger zone of inhibition.

Conclusions:

• Spanlastic vesicles are effective nanocarriers for enhancing luliconazole's dermal delivery.
• This approach offers improved targeting of deeper skin layers for effective antifungal therapy.
• Spanlastics represent a promising strategy for developing advanced dermatological treatments.