In vivo evaluation of limonene-based transdermal therapeutic system of nicorandil in healthy human volunteers.

Hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC) gel drug reservoir system prepared with 70:30 v/v ethanol-water solvent system containing 6% w/w of limonene was effective in promoting the in vitro transdermal delivery of nicorandil. The objective of the present study was to fabricate and evaluate a limonene-based transdermal therapeutic system (TTS) for its ability to provide the desired steady-state plasma concentration of nicorandil in human volunteers. The in vitro permeation of nicorandil from a limonene-based HPMC gel drug reservoir was studied across excised rat skin (control), EVA2825 membrane, adhesive-coated EVA2825 membrane and adhesive-coated EVA2825 membrane-excised rat skin composite to account for their effect on the desired flux of nicorandil. The flux of nicorandil from the limonene-based HMPC drug reservoir across EVA2825 membrane decreased to 215.8 +/- 9.7 microg/cm(2).h when compared to that obtained from control, indicating that EVA2825 was effective as a rate-controlling membrane. The further decrease in nicorandil flux across adhesive-coated EVA2825 membrane and adhesive-coated EVA2825 membrane-excised rat skin composite showed that the adhesive coat and skin also controlled the in vitro transdermal delivery. The limonene-based drug reservoir was sandwiched between adhesive-coated EVA2825-release liner composite and a backing membrane. The resultant sandwich was heat-sealed as circle-shaped patch (20 cm(2)), trimmed and subjected to in vivo evaluation in human volunteers against immediate-release tablets of nicorandil (reference formulation). The fabricated limonene-based TTS of nicorandil provided a steady-state plasma concentration of 21.3 ng/ml up to 24 h in healthy human volunteers. It was concluded that the limonene-based TTS of nicorandil provided the desired plasma concentration of the drug for the predetermined period of time with minimal fluctuations and improved bioavailability. Copyright 2005 S. Karger AG, Basel