Curcumin is a phenolic compound of turmeric with remarkable pharmacological properties. However, curcumin’s inherent poor water solubility, permeability, and instability in the gastrointestinal tract hinder its therapeutic use. Herein, curcumin-loaded solid self-micro- and nanoemulsifying drug delivery systems (C-SSMEDDS and C-SSNEDDS) were developed using Neusilin®UFL2 as a solid carrier. All developed formulations significantly showed improvement in curcumin water solubility, >100-fold as compared to the free curcumin. In both the simulated stomach (pH 1.2) and intestinal (pH 6.8) conditions, C-SSMEDDS and C-SSNEDDS enhanced the dissolution profiles of curcumin with 60%–70% release within 5 minutes and possessed an average droplet diameter of ~100 and ~150 nm, correspondingly. Moreover, permeation studies in the Caco-2 cell monolayer revealed that both formulations provided significantly greater cellular accumulation and absorption compared with the free curcumin. Finally, the C-SSMEDDS and C-SSNEDDS were physicochemically stable for at least 1 year at ambient temperature (25°C ± 0.5°C). In summary, the findings indicated that C-SSMEDDS and C-SSNEDDS are potential strategies for improving curcumin oral bioavailability.
Key words: absorption, curcumin, dissolution, self-emulsifying drug delivery system, oral administration
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