Nanoparticular drug delivery system of cytarabine hydrochloride (CTH) for improved treatment of lymphoma

The Cytarabine Hydrochloride (CTH) drug has a very low biological half-life; hence it was formulated in nanoparticles to improve the therapeutic efficacy by targeting to the tumorous site and maintain the drug plasma levels. CTH nanoparticles were formulated by emulsion polymerization in continuous aqueous phase using methacrylic acid copolymer (Eudragit L 100). The formulated CTH nanoparticles were characterized by determining its particle size, drug content, and drug recovery. They are also tested for its sterility and stability. The particle size of these CTH nanoparticles ranged from 400-800 nm and were morphologically spherical and uniform. The in vitro release studies of CTH nanoparticles were carried out which exhibited a sustained release of CTH from the nanoparticles upto 30 h. The in vivo pharmacokinetic studies were carried out in lymphoma bearing mice and the drug was detected in plasma even after 24 h. This reveals that the nanoparticular formulation of CTH had improved stability in the biological fluids. The study of hematological parameters after administering CTH nanoparticles continuously for 9 days to tumor bearing mice was able to restore the altered parameters to the normal levels. This treatment also improved the lifespan of the tumor bearing mice. All these studies clearly revealed that the therapeutic efficacy of CTH was increased by nanoparticular formulation.