S. Tamizharasi’s scientific contributions

Objective: The objective of this study was to formulate and evaluate the poorly soluble drug, naringenin (NAR) into nanosuspension to increase the solubility and enhance the dissolution rate and then improve its bioavailability.Methods: Nanosuspenion of naringenin (NARNS) was prepared using high-pressure homogenization method using Soya lecithin, Polaxamer-407, Polaxamer-188, Hydroxypropyl methyl cellulose (HPMC) and Tween-80. Ten formulations were prepared to show the effect of stabilizer and its ratio. D-α-Tocopheryl polyethene glycol succinate 1000 (TPGS) was added as a co-stabilizer. All these formulations were evaluated for their particle size, PDI, zeta potential, FT-IR study, drug content, saturation solubility studies, entrapment efficiency, in vitro permeability and in vitro drug release. The formulation was further evaluated for scanning electron microscope (SEM), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and Powder X-ray diffraction (P-XRD) and hemocompatibility assessment.Results: All the prepared formulations were in the nano size. The optimum concentration of the stabilizer was in the formulation was found 1:1.5:1 (drug: stabilizer: co-stabilizer ratio). Dramatic effect of the particle size reduction was found by the addition of the co-stabilizer (TPGS) in formulation N2 that has P. S 80.52±0.13 nm. The solubility and dissolution of NAR in the form of NARNS were significantly higher than those of pure NAR. SEM report shows that naringenin nanosuspension revealed a smooth texture. P-XRD crystallography diffraction and DSC studies indicated that the crystalline state of NAR was converted into amorphous nature. The safety evaluation showed that NARNS provided a lower rate of erythrocyte hemolysis. Conclusion: In this study, (NARNS) was successfully carried out by high-pressure homogenization technique and characterized. The physio-chemical characterization shown that crystalline naringenin was converted to a polymorphic form (DSC and P-XRD Study) which evidenced by enhanced dissolution rate in comparisons of the formulation with (NAR) pure drug. The NARNS has shown 7.5±0.4 fold increased relative bioavailability when compared to the NAR. The increased drug dissolution rate may have a significant impact in absorption which in turn the improved oral bioavailability of naringenin. Thus, this delivery system may prefer to improve the dissolution of poorly soluble drugs like NAR and thus enhanced oral bioavailability. The safety evaluation showed that nanoformulation (NF2) shows a lower rate of erythrocyte hemolysis. These findings suggest that the selected formulation may represent a promising new drug formulation for intravenous administration in the treatment of certain cancers.