Study on the Formulation and in vitro Release of Evodiamine-Loaded Ginger-Derived Extracellular Vesicle-Like Nanoparticles

  OBJECTIVE  Lipids from ginger-derived extracellular vesicle-like nanoparticles (EVNs) were extracted and used to prepare liposomes containing evodiamine (EVO) to improve its druggability.

  METHODS  EVNs from ginger were separated by differential centrifugation, and the lipid extraction solvent was screened. Liposomes loaded with EVO (EVO@Lipo) were prepared by thin film dispersion method. The formulation and preparation process of liposome were optimized by orthogonal test with encapsulation rate as evaluation index. EVO@Lipo was characterized by particle size and potential analysis, differential calorimetry (DSC) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and the drug release behavior of EVO@Lipo was investigated in vitro.

  RESULTS  Trichloromethane, methanol-trichloromethane and ethanol-dichloromethane were screened as lipid extraction solvents. The optimized preparation conditions were methanol-trichloromethane (2∶1) as lipid extraction solvent, drug to lipid ratio of 1∶50, ultrasonic conditions of 60 W, 15 min. The encapsulation efficiency of EVO@Lipo was 88.21%, the average particle size was 194.9 nm, the PDI was 0.22, and the Zeta potential was -35.3 mV. Accumulated evidence suggests that EVO@Lipo is not a physical mixture of drugs and lipids. In vitro release experiments showed that EVO@Lipo could delay drug release.

  CONCLUSION  Lipids from ginger EVNs can be used to load hydrophobic drug EVO, improve its solubility, and have a certain sustained release effect.