Background: The present study was aimed to develop and optimize in situ gel for the treatment of periodontal disease. Materials and Methods: Temperature-sensitive in situ gel containing 0.1% w/v Chlorhexidine hydrochloride was formulated by cold method using different polymers. Preliminary study was carried out to optimize different types and concentration of polymers such as Poloxamer 188, Poloxamer 407, Gellan gum, and Carbopol 934P. Central composite design was employed for optimization of the effect of independent variables such as Poloxamer 407 and Carbopol 934P on responses such as gelation temperature, spreadability, cumulative percentage release at 2 h, and time for 50% drug release (t ₅₀ %). Each formulations were evaluated for clarity, pH, gelation temperature, spreadability, drug content, in vitro drug release, t ₅₀ %, and cumulative percentage drug release at 2 h. Results: Results of evaluation parameters revealed that the drug release, gelation temperature was considerably decreased with increasing t ₅₀ % as the concentration of each polymer was increased. The desirability function was utilized to find out optimized formulation of the factorial design. Formulation F6 showed the highest overall desirability of 0.6283 and, therefore, this formulation was considered to be the optimized formulation. The % relative error was calculated, which showed that observed responses were in close agreement with the predicted values calculated from the generated regression equations. Conclusion: The clarity, pH, drug content of all formulations was found to be satisfactory. Further, all the formulations showed sustained drug release for a period of 6 h, which satisfied to treat periodontal disease.

In recent years, due to their distinctive and adaptable therapeutic effects, many natural bioactive compounds have been commonly used to treat diseases. Their limited solubility, low bioavailability, inadequate gastrointestinal tract stability, high metabolic rate, and shorter duration of action limited their pharmaceutical applications. However, those can be improved using nanotechnology to create various drug delivery systems, including lipid-based nanoparticles, to adjust the compounds’ physicochemical properties and pharmacokinetic profile. Because of the enormous technical advancements made in the fundamental sciences and the physical and chemical manipulation of individual atoms and molecules, the subject of nanotechnology has experienced revolutionary growth. By fabricating certain functionalized particles, nanotechnology opens an innovative horizon in research and development for overcoming restrictions, including traditional medication administration systems. Nanotechnology-driven bioactive compounds are certain to have a high impact and clinical value for current and future uses. Lipid-based nanotechnologies were shown to deliver a range of naturally occurring bioactive compounds with decent entrapment potential and stability, a successfully controlled release, increased bioavailability, and intriguing therapeutic activity. This review outlines bioactive compounds such as paclitaxel, curcumin, rhodomyrtone, quercetin, kaempferol, resveratrol, epigallocatechin-3-gallate, silymarin, and oridonin, fortified within either a natural or synthetic lipid-based drug delivery system based on nanotechnology and their evaluation and clinical considerations.

The present investigation was aimed to develop self-nanoemulsifying tablets (SNETs) as novel nanosized solid oral dosage forms for Irbesartan (IRB). In the first part of the investigation, IRB-loaded self-nanoemulsifying drug delivery systems (SNEDDS) were developed using Capryol 90 – Cremophor RH40 – Transcutol P as three component (oil – surfactant – cosurfactant) SNEDDS system. On the basis of ternary phase diagram IRB-loaded SNEDDS were optimized by using Design of Experiments (DoE) and Principal component analysis (PCA) with amount of oil and surfactant: cosurfactant ratio (K_m) as factors. The optimized batch of IRB-loaded SNEDDS comprised of 31.62% w/w of Capryol 90 as oil phase, 49.90% w/w Cremophor RH40 as surfactant and 18.48% w/w of Transcutol P as cosurfactant exemplified a mean globule size as 23.94 nm. Further, with an aim to provide enhanced patient compliance the optimized batch of liquid SNEDDS was transformed into SNETs by liquisolid compaction technique. Solid state characterization of IRB-loaded liquisolid mixtures revealed a decrease in the magnitude of crystallinity of IRB. The results of in vitro drug release study of optimized batch of IRB-loaded SNET illustrated a remarkable improvement in the dissolution rate as compared to marketed tablets (Avapro® 75). The results of in vivo pharmacokinetic study on Wister rats revealed 1.78-fold enhancement in oral bioavailability for IRB-loaded SNETs against marketed tablets. The present study proposed SNEDDS as one of the suitable approach for developing nanosized solid oral dosage forms of poorly water soluble drugs like Irbesartan.

The design and synthesis of pharmaceutical cocrystals have received great interest in the recent years. Cocrystallization of drug substances offers a tremendous opportunity for the development of new drug products with superior physical and pharmacological properties such as solubility, stability, hydroscopicity, dissolution rates and bioavailability. This short review summarizes this highly topical field, covering why the topic is of interest in pharmaceutical formulation, the definitions and practical scope of cocrystals, cocrystal preparation and characterization, a comparison of different (traditional and novel) methods for cocrystal formation and the implications for regulatory control and intellectual property protection. Traditionally, cocrystals can be prepared by solvent evaporation method, grinding, and slurry method, but every method has its limitations for certain conditions. The current trend for cocrystal formation uses sophisticated methods such as the hot melt extrusion method, spray-drying method, supercritical fluid technology and the newest method: laser irradiation. The purpose of the development of a new method is not only to overcome the limitation of traditional cocrystallization methods, but also to generate simpler steps and a continuous process for the production of the cocrystal product. This article provides a brief explanation of each method that can be used to generate pharmaceutical cocrystals as well as evaluation of cocrystals. This article also covers how the developing field of cocrystallization may impact the pharmaceutical intellectual property landscape.