Hydrocortisone-Loaded Lipid-Polymer Hybrid Nanoparticles for Controlled Topical Delivery: Formulation Design Optimization and In Vitro and In Vivo Appraisal

The barrier functionalities of the skin offer a majorbut not insuperablehindrance for fabrication of skin delivery effective systems. Thiswork aimed to develop an optimized lipid polymer hybrid nanoparticleand assess the skin delivery effectiveness of hydrocortisone (9.872 +/- 0.361 x 10(-3) cm(2)/h) of adrug through the skin from an optimized formulation when comparedwith a drug solution. Meanwhile, histological examination after topicalapplication of the optimized formulation showed a safe increase inepidermal thickness. In vivo, the optimized formulation showed promisinganti-inflammatory activity in a croton oil-induced ear rosacea model.As an excellent anti-inflammatory agent, these findings propose thatthe use of lipomers could be a promising strategy to improve the topicaleffectiveness of hydrocortisone acetate (HCA) against inflammatorydiseases. Collectively, these results support our view that lipidpolymer hybrid nanoparticles can proficiently deliver hydrocortisoneto the skin in treating skin inflammatory conditions.