Effect of aluminium oxide nanoparticles on long-acting oleogels laden with Sc-PLA-chitosan nanoparticles for anti-HIV therapy

The development of a long-acting injectable drug delivery systems (DDS) of active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) holds great promise in addressing the challenges of treatment adherence, predominantly in HIV/AIDS. Polymers are inevitable carriers for the preparation of DDS, which are typically composed of polylactide (PLA), carbohydrates such as chitosan or cellulose derivatives. In this study, the tenofovir alafenamide (TAF) laden PLAstereocomplex-chitosan nanoparticles (Sc-PLA-chitosan NPs) were developed through the spray-dried technique. These NPs had a mean particle size of 91 +/- 8 nm and were incorporated into oleogels consisting of sesame oil and ethyl-cellulose. To enhance the syringeability of highly viscous oleogels, the commercially available aluminium oxide NPs were added with a size of 78 nm. The proposed DDS exhibits prolonged sustained release for up to 12 days in phosphate buffer pH 7.4. Noteworthy, the oleogels with Sc-PLA-chitosan NPs displayed extended tissue permeation properties indicating their potential long-acting in-vivo drug release. Collectively, this study recommends that the development of Sc-PLA-chitosan NPs-loaded oleogels represents a certainly adaptable longacting injectables system for the delivery of APIs in the context of HIV/AIDS. This system is expected to contribute to improved and effective treatment adherence among patients infected with HIV and provide requisite therapeutic outcomes.