Formulation and Evaluation of Polymeric Nanoparticulate Gel for Topical Delivery

The aim of the present study was to enhance the permeation of drug into the skin and to reduce the skin irritation. To achieve the objective the drug was formulated in to nanoparticles using chitosan as a polymer and these drug loaded nanoparticles were incorporated in gel. The prepared nanoparticles were characterized by FTIR, DSC, SEM, and particle size. The particle size for optimized nanoparticulate gel (NPG-4) was found to be between 49-305nm. SEM photographs showed that nanoparticles were roughly spherical in shape and free from cracks. The NPG-4 showed 43.9% of encapsulation efficiency and 18.9% drug loading. At the end of 24h the in vitro drug release was found to be 90.1% in pH 7.4 phosphate buffer saline (PBS) and in vitro skin permeation studies NPG-4 showed 2.1mg/cm(2) of drug permeation, which was better than the marketed formulation (NIZRAL 2%) cream, which showed only 1.2mg/cm(2) of drug permeation. The NPG-4 showed no primary skin irritation when tested on rabbit skin.