Enhancement of atorvastatin oral bioavailability via encapsulation in polymeric nanoparticles

Despite the fact that atrovastatin (At) is being one of the bestselling statins used to prevent complicated cardiovascular diseases, its low oral bioavailability decreases its clinical relevance. Herein, incorporation of At into ethylcellulose nanoparticles (At-NPs) was executed to test if it would enhance its oral bioavailability. The emulsification-evaporation method was used to prepare the At-NPs. The prepared nanoparticles were characterized by measuring the particle size, zeta potential as well as using FTIR, DSC, and XRD examination. The entrapment efficiency, drug content, and the in vitro release behavior of At-NPs were also examined. The in vivo oral bioavailability of the selected At-NPs formula was tested after being given orally to New Zealand rabbits. The nanoparticles obtained had a high drug content and a distinct spherical shape but with varying sizes. No physical or chemical interactions were detected between At and the nanoparticles as confirmed by FTIR, DSC, and XRD. The in vitro release study of At from the prepared At-NPs has shown nanoparticles size-dependent release behavior. The in vivo oral absorption testing confirmed the bioavailability of the prepared At-NPs to be as follows: (Cmax = 940 ng/ml and AUC0-12 = 8759 ng.h/ml) > Lipitor® (Cmax = 635 ng/ml and AUC0-12 = 4367 ng.h/ml) > At (Cmax = 515 ng/ml and AUC0-12 = 2517 ng.h/ml). These results revealed that the oral formula of At-NPs increases the bioavailability of At 3.87 times. This makes ethylcellulose nanoparticles an esteemed candidate nano-vehicle for At, increasing its bioavailability and thus improving its clinical relevance.