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Boonnada Pamornpathomkul,1 Adisak Wongkajornsilp,2 Wanida Laiwattanapaisal,3 Theerasak Rojanarata,1 Praneet Opanasopit,1 Tanasait Ngawhirunpat1 1Department of Pharmaceutical Technology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Pharmaceutical Development of Green Innovations Group, Silpakorn University, Nakhon Pathom, 2Department of Pharmacology, Faculty of Medicine Siriraj Hospital, Mahidol University, Bangkok, 3Department of Clinical Chemistry, Faculty of Allied Health Sciences, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand Abstract: The aim of this study was to investigate the use of different types of microneedles (MNs) and nanocarriers for in vitro skin permeation and in vivo immunization of plasmid DNA encoding ovalbumin (pOVA). In vitro skin permeation studies indicated that hollow MNs had a superior enhancing effect on skin permeation compared with solid MN patches, electroporation (EP) patches, the combination of MN and EP patches, and untreated skin. Upon using hollow MNs combined with nanocarriers for pOVA delivery, the skin permeation was higher than for the delivery of naked pOVA, as evidenced by the increased amount of pOVA in Franz diffusion cells and immunoglobulin G (IgG) antibody responses. When the hollow MNs were used for the delivery of nanocarrier:pOVA complexes into the skin of mice, they induced a stronger IgG immune response than conventional subcutaneous (SC) injections. In addition, immunization of mice with the hollow MNs did not induce signs of skin infection or pinpoint bleeding. Accordingly, the hollow MNs combined with a nanocarrier delivery system is a promising approach for delivering pOVA complexes to the skin for promoting successful immunization. Keywords: hollow microneedle, solid microneedle, electroporation, plasmid DNA encoding ovalbumin, skin immunization, nanocarrier

Thirapit Subongkot, Boonnada Pamornpathomkul, Theerasak Rojanarata, Praneet Opanasopit, Tanasait Ngawhirunpat Faculty of Pharmacy, Silpakorn University, Nakhon Pathom, Thailand Abstract: This study aimed to determine the mechanism by which ultradeformable liposomes (ULs) with terpenes enhance skin penetration for transdermal drug delivery of fluorescein sodium, using transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM). Skin treated with ULs containing d-limonene, obtained from in vitro skin penetration studies, was examined via TEM to investigate the effect of ULs on ultrastructural changes of the skin, and to evaluate the mechanism by which ULs enhance skin penetration. The receiver medium collected was analyzed by TEM and CLSM to evaluate the mechanism of the drug carrier system. Our findings revealed that ULs could enhance penetration by denaturing intracellular keratin, degrading corneodesmosomes, and disrupting the intercellular lipid arrangement in the stratum corneum. As inferred from the presence of intact vesicles in the receiver medium, ULs are also able to act as a drug carrier system. CLSM images showed that intact vesicles of ULs might penetrate the skin via a transappendageal pathway, potentially a major route of skin penetration. Keywords: ultradeformable liposomes, mechanism of enhanced skin penetration, transmission electron microscopy, confocal laser scanning microscopy

Sureewan Duangjit,1,2 Boonnada Pamornpathomkul,1 Praneet Opanasopit,1 Theerasak Rojanarata,1 Yasuko Obata,2 Kozo Takayama,2 Tanasait Ngawhirunpat11Faculty of Pharmacy, Silpakorn University, Nakhon Pathom, Thailand; 2Department of Pharmaceutics, Hoshi University, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo, JapanAbstract: The objective of this study was to investigate the influence of surfactant charge, surfactant carbon chain length, and surfactant content on the physicochemical characteristics (ie, vesicle size, zeta potential, elasticity, and entrapment efficiency), morphology, stability, and in vitro skin permeability of meloxicam (MX)-loaded liposome. Moreover, the mechanism for the liposome-enhanced skin permeation of MX was determined by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and differential scanning calorimetry. The model formulation used in this study was obtained using a response surface method incorporating multivariate spline interpolation (RSM-S). Liposome formulations with varying surfactant charge (anionic, neutral, and cationic), surfactant carbon chain length (C4, C12, and C16), and surfactant content (10%, 20%, and 29%) were prepared. The formulation comprising 29% cationic surfactant with a C16 chain length was found to be the optimal liposome for the transdermal delivery of MX. The skin permeation flux of the optimal formulation was 2.69-fold higher than that of a conventional liposome formulation. Our study revealed that surfactants affected the physicochemical characteristics, stability, and skin permeability of MX-loaded liposomes. These findings provide important fundamental information for the development of liposomes as transdermal drug delivery systems.Keywords: optimal liposome, optimization, transdermal drug delivery, surfactant charge, surfactant carbon chain length, surfactant content