Abstract

Asiatic acid is a very promising anticancer drug; however, its poor water solubility is a serious limitation. In this study, non-ionic surfactant nanocapsules were manufactured using sorbitan monostearate (Span 60) and cholesterol (1:1) to entrap and solubilize Asiatic acid. Niosome nanocapsules with or without Asiatic acid were prepared using thin film hydration method by hand shaking at 50°C followed by bath and probe sonication. The probe-sonicated Asiatic acid nanocapsules had a hydrodynamic size of 179 ± 4.4 nm compared to 264 ±58.4 nm for the nanocapsules containing no Asiatic acid. When no drug was included, the nanocapsules had a zeta potential value of -27.3± 5.6 mV, whilst inclusion of Asiatic acid prior to hydration caused the zeta potential to be -7.2 ± 3.5 mV. The manufacture of Asiatic acid in nanocapsule formulation resulted in marked enhancement of drug solubility, so that drug solubility reached 2.4 mg/ml which is 160 times higher than the literature reported aqueous solubility of this drug. Furthermore, the drug entrapment efficiency in the nanocapsules was as high as 78.8 (23.64 mg drug/100 mg lipid). Overall, a simple approach to manufacturing Asiatic acid niosome nanocapsules has been introduced, offering enhanced solubility and superior entrapment of the drug. © Nova Science Publishers, Inc.