Asenapine maleate-loaded nanostructured lipid carriers: optimization and in vitro, ex vivo and in vivo evaluations.

To prepare nanostructured lipid carriers (NLCs) loaded with asenapine maleate (ASPM) to increase its oral bioavailability by intestinal lymphatic uptake. ASPM-NLCs were prepared by ultrasound dispersion technique, by adopting Design of Experiment approach, and characterized. The optimized formulation exhibited good physicochemical parameters. Differential scanning calorimetry and x-ray diffraction studies indicated the amorphized nature of ASPM in lipid matrix. In vitro drug release study indicated the sustained release of drug from NLCs. ASPM-NLCs showed greater permeability across Caco2 cells and everted rat ileum. ASPM-NLCs showed greater cellular uptake, superior preclinical oral bioavailability and higher efficacy in reducing the L-DOPA-carbidopa-induced locomotor count compared with plain drug. ASPM-NLCs were successfully developed that showed enhanced performance both in vitro and in vivo.