Flurbiprofen conjugates based on hydroxyethylcellulose: Synthesis, characterization, pharmaceutical and pharmacological applications

Abstract

Present study deals with fabrication of macromolecular prodrugs (MPDs) of flurbiprofen (FLB) with hydroxyethylcellulose (HEC). FLB was activated using p-toluenesulfonyl chloride and reacted with pre-dissolved HEC to yield HEC-FLB conjugates 1-3. Resultant prodrugs showed moderate to high degree of substitution (DS: 0.40-1.74) and assembled into nanoparticles of 220-550 nm at water/DMSO interface. Pharmacokinetic studies of HEC-FLB conjugate revealed a t sub(max) of 4.0 h indicating delayed release of FLB while t sub(1/2) of 10.63 h indicated sustained release characteristics of the conjugate in rabbit model. Pharmacological studies revealed that HEC-FLB conjugates had immunomodulatory potential as results showed 34 and 36 percent inhibition of Interleukin-6 and tumor necrosis factor-alpha, respectively. A 79 percent inhibition of paw edema indicated anti-inflammatory properties of the conjugates. Cell viability studies indicated safety of the conjugates to L929 cell lines up to 24 h in the range of 2-10 mM. Moreover, thermal analysis indicated greater stability of MPDs than FLB.