Nanostructured lipid carrier (NLC) based gel of celecoxib

Nanostructured lipid carriers (NLC) based topical gel of celecoxib was formulated for the treatment of inflammation and allied conditions. NLC prepared by the microemulsion template technique were characterized by photon correlation spectroscopy for size and scanning electron micrograph (SEM) studies. Drug encapsulation efficiency was determined using Nanosep (R) centrifugal device. The nanoparticulate dispersion was suitably gelled and assessed for in vitro release and in vitro skin permeation using rat skin. Efficacy of the NLC gel was established using a pharmacodynamic study, i.e., aerosil-induced rat paw edema model. The skin permeation and rat paw edema pharmacodynamic studies were carried out in comparison with a micellar gel which had the same composition as that of the NLC gel except for the solid lipid and oil. The NLC based gel described in this study showed faster onset and elicited prolonged activity until 24 h. (C) 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.