NOVEL VAGINAL BIOADHESIVE DRUG DELIVERY SYSTEMS FOR THE TREATMENT OF VAGINAL CANDIDIASIS

Abstract

quotCandida albicans is the major cause of candidiasis. Hydroxypropyl and#946; Cyclodextrin was first developed to increase the solubility of curcumin. The formation of the Curcumin- HPand#946;CD complex was characterized by FT-IR, DSC, XRD and SEM also evaluated for its solubility. Curcumin- HPand#946;CD complex was formulated in a bioadhesive tablets using hydroxypropyl methyl cellulose (HPMC), hydroxyl ethyl cellulose (HEC) and Carbopol 934P by 23 factorial design to investigate effect of polymers on hardness, % swelling and drug release from tablets. Formulations showed 100% drug release from 5-12hrs with best results in terms of % swelling and mucoadhesion. Mucoadhesive X-ray studies showed the tablet adheres to vaginal mucosa upto 8hrs. newlineThe effect of diluents was investigated. Curcumin tablets were prepared by direct compression method and evaluated for average thickness, hardness, friability, drug content, % swelling, drug release and mucoadhesion. The release was observed to follow both first order kinetics and fickian diffusion. From the study it was observed that using lactose or microcrystalline cellulose in the formulations resulted in faster drug release profiles when compare to starch. And lactose is best suitable diluent for curcumin-HPand#946;CD bioadhesive vaginal tablets. newlineThe earlier developed Curcumin-HPand#946;CD complex was employed to prepare polymeric film by solvent evaporation method using HPMC E15 and Carbopol 934P. 32 factorial design was employed and found the effect on dependent variables like % elongation, Tensile strength, bioadhesion and % drug release. The film retained vaginal mucosa up to 6 h. The developed Curcumin-HPand#946;CD bioadhesive vaginal tablet using 23 factorial design and bioadhesive vaginal film using 32 factorial design could be a promising safe herbal medication and can ensure longer residence in the vagina and provide an efficient therapy for vaginal candidiasis. newlinequot newline