EFFECT OF CHEMICAL PENETRATION ENHANCERS ON THE TRANSDERMAL PATCHES OF NIMODIPINE

We report a matrix type of transdermal drug delivery for nimodipine. It is a hydrophobic drug with very poor aqueous solubility that is commonly prescribed for the prevention and treatment of delayed ischemic neurological disorders. In the present study we try to investigate the effect of permeation enhancers on the invitro permeation of nimodipine across the rat skin. Films were prepared by using Eudragit RS100 (ERS100) and Hydroxyl Propyl Methyl Cellulose (HPMC) K100M polymer by incorporating propylene glycol as permeation enhancer and Dibutyl phthalate (DBT) as plasticizer by using solvent evaporation method. Transdermal films were prepared by using Eudragit RS100 (ERS100), Hydroxyl Propyl Methyl Cellulose (HPMC) K100M polymer without permeation enhancers by varying the blend ratios viz., 2:8, 4:6, 6:4, 8:2 through solution casting method. The drug loaded membranes were evaluated for thickness, tensile behaviors, content uniformity; transdermal permeation through rat abdominal skin was determined by Franz diffusion cell. The above all evaluation were satisfied by T 1 formulation i.e., the flux of T1 formulation is found to be 83.40% more than other formulation so this formulation was used for the further studies by using different concentrations of permeation enhancers. Then drug loaded membranes with different concentrations of permeation enhancers were evaluated for thickness, tensile behaviors, content uniformity, and transdermal permeation through rat abdominal skin was determined by Franz diffusion cell. The result shows that when increase in the concentration of permeation enhancers the flux also increases