Design and Characterization of Niosomes of Ethionamide for Multi Drug Resistance Tuberculosis

Abstract

Ethionamide is a second line anti-TB agent selective for MDR-TB. In the present study, Ethionamide niosomes were prepared by thin film hydration technique for I.V. administration in which non-ionic surfactants (Span-40, Span-60 and Span-80) and Cholesterol were used in various ratios. From that span 40 was selected. Solvents like Chloroform and Methanol were used. Prepared niosomes were characterized for Percentage Entrapment efficiency (% EE), particle size, zeta potential, polydispersity index and sterility testing. Further studies like scanning electron microscopy (SEM), release kinetics and stability studies were performed for the optimized formulation F12 which was prepared using drug ethionamide(25mg), cholesterol(75mg) and span 40(50mg) (1:3:2 respectively). The result showed that the entrapment efficiency was 88.9%, mean particle size was 124.4nm, polydispersity index was 1.294 and zeta potential was -39.71 mV. F12 formulation showed drug release of 94.89% (p value=0.04) after 24 hours in phosphate buffer 7.4 pH. The results suggest that the ethionamide niosomes formulated using span and cholesterol by thin film hydration technique might be a better choice for intravenous delivery of ethionamide for the treatment of multi drug resistance tuberculosis.