No abstract

Aim: Nanostrucured Lipid Carriers (NLCs) are the 2 nd generation of Solid Lipid Nanoparticles (SLNs) designed to overcome limitations of SLNs. Their characteristics can be modulated by variations in formulation and process variables. The present study was aimed at investigating the influence of formulation variables, solid: liquid lipid ratio and stabilizer amount on some important characteristics of Quetiapine Fumarate Nanostructured Lipid Carriers (QF-NLC) like percent Entrapment Efficiency (%EE), Particle Size (PS), Polydispersity Index (PDI) and Zeta Potential (ZP). Methods and Materials: The study was carried out by varying the ratio of solid:liquid lipid and stabilizer amount sequentially in two sets of experiments and studying their impact on the selected characteristics of QF-NLC. Hot emulsification followed by ultrasonication was the method of preparation. Precirol ATO5, oleic acid and Phospholipon 90G (P90G) were selected as the solid lipid, liquid lipid and stabilizer respectively. Results: On varying the solid: liquid lipid ratios in the first set of experiments, %EE, PS and ZP ranged from 65. 05-75.52%, 281.5-150.4nm and -16.4--21.4mV respectively showing that decrease in the ratio was related to %EE and ZP inversely and to PS and PDI directly. Increase in the amount of P90G in the second set of experiments showed %EE to be affected positively and PS and PDI negatively. ZP was less sensitive to changes in P90G. Conclusion: From the study it can be concluded that by varying the chosen formulation variables a QF-NLC formulation with desired characteristics can be formulated for the chosen objective.