Abstract
The aim of this work was to develop self-nanoemulsifying liquisolid tablets (SNELT) to enhance the dissolution profile of poorly water-soluble simvastatin. SNELT present a unique technique of incorporating self-nanoemulsifying drug delivery systems (SNEDDS) into tablets. Optimized SNEDDS containing different oils, Cremophor
®
RH 40 (surfactant) and Transcutol
®
HP (co-surfactant), at different ratios, were used as liquid vehicles and loaded on carrier material, microcrystalline cellulose (MCC), and coating material, Cab-o-sil
®
H-5 (nanosize colloidal silicon dioxide) powders at different loading factors (
L
f
) and fixed excipient ratio (
R
= 20). The effect of using different carrier materials, granulated mannitol, crystalline mannitol, and maltodextrin with MCC at different ratios, and different coating materials, Aeroperl
®
300 (granulated silicon dioxide) at different excipient ratios (
R
), was also emphasized. Liquisolid powders with acceptable flowability, compressibility, and tablet weight were compressed into tablets. Results revealed that powders with
L
f
= 0.2 possessed the most preferable properties to be tableted. SNELT with MCC and Cab-o-sil
®
H-5 were able to generate nanoemulsions and to enhance the cumulative percent of drug dissolved at 60 min significantly to reach up to 90%. Furthermore, using carrier material (granulated mannitol/MCC at ratio 3:1) enabled SNELT to disperse into nanoemulsion (
Z
-average = 25.7 nm) and improved the dissolution profile significantly to reach 99% at 60 min. Cab-o-sil
®
H-5 proved to be a better coating material compared to Aeroperl
®
300. In conclusion, developed SNELT were promising in enhancing
in vitro
dissolution of simvastatin and excipients highly affect SNELT’s performance.