Development and Characterization of Sulfasalazine Cubosomes for Potential Transdermal Drug Delivery

Rheumatoid arthritis is indeed a constant, progressive autoimmune disease that acts on the synovial membrane, distinguished by joint pain, swelling, and tenderness. Sulfasalazine belongs to BCS Class IV having low solubility and low permeability. To overcome the issue and provide a localized effect Cubosomes were chosen for the transdermal drug delivery system.

The primary objective of this investigation was to pass on sulfasalazine-loaded cubosomes over the skin to treat rheumatoid arthritis. On the way to overcome this issue of oral sulfasalazine and provide localized effect, Cubosomes were chosen for the transdermal drug delivery system.

Sulfasalazine-loaded cubosomes were prepared by the top-down method using GMO and Poloxamer 407. Different concentrations of lipid and surfactant were used in the formulation using 3² full factorial designs. The prepared formulations were assessed for p.s, z,p, %EE, FTIR, SEM, in-vitro release, ex-vivo permeation, and deposition studies with pH 7.4 phosphate buffer saline.

The particle size varies between 65 nm to 129 nm, while the negative zeta potential ranged from - 18.8 mV to -24.8 mV. The entrapment efficiency was between 87% and 95%. The formulations' in-vitro drug release was carried out for 12 hours. The optimized formulation showed a controlled release of sulfasalazine and better ex-vivo permeation and deposition properties than sulfasalazine suspension.

Overall study findings support the possibility of applying transdermal sulfasalazineloaded cubosomes to alleviate rheumatoid arthritis.