Formulation Development, Characterization and In-vitro Evaluation of Tamoxifen Loaded Liposomes

Background: The study was aimed to prepare and evaluate tamoxifen loaded controlled release liposomes to reduce the side effects of tamoxifen during cancer treatment.

Methods: Different tamoxifen loaded liposomes were prepared by modified ether injection (MEIM) and thin film hydration method (TFHM) under prescribed conditions. The prepared liposomes were characterized by using optical microscopy, evaluating encapsulation efficiency, in-vitro and ex-vivo diffusion studies by using dialysis membrane and chicken intestinal sac respectively.

Results: The data revealed that all of the liposomes were spherical in shape and stable under three physical conditions i.e. 4, 25 and 37 ± 2°C temperatures and 60 ±5% relative humidity. Additionally most of the liposomes followed zero order and class II release kinetics. It was also observed that with the increase of phospholipids and cholesterol, entrapment efficiency of liposome vesicles increased thus giving a controlled release drug delivery system but further increase reduced this efficiency at a certain level.

Conclusion: The formulated control release liposomes might be a good drug delivery system for target oriented drug delivery with minimum side effects of tamoxifen during cancer treatment.