alpha-asarone and Anaphylaxis

The commercially available alpha-asarone injections (CA-ARE) were frequently found to cause severe anaphylactic reactions by the solubilizer contained in the formulation such as polysorbate 80 and propylene glycol. This study aimed to develop a new ARE injection using Kolliphor HS 15 as solubilizing agent (HS 15-ARE) by the dissolution method to resolve its poor solubility problem and reduce the anaphylaxis of CA-AREs caused by Polysorbate 80. The HS 15-ARE micelle showed a homogeneous round shape with the mean particle size of around 13.73 ± 0.02 nm, polydisperse index (PDI) of 0.19 ± 0.01 and solubilizing efficiency of 95.7% ± 2.4%. In vitro and in vivo studies showed that HS 15-ARE is a stable injection presenting the same pharmacokinetic profile with CA-ARE. Moreover, improved therapeutic effect was observed for HS 15-ARE in treating asthma compared to CA-ARE (p < 0.05) with no anaphylactic reactions observed. These results demonstrate that the new formulation of ARE (HS 15-ARE) has a great potential for replacing CA-AREs injections.

Topics: Allylbenzene Derivatives; Anaphylaxis; Animals; Anisoles; Anti-Asthmatic Agents; Asthma; Biological Availability; Cells, Cultured; Chemistry, Pharmaceutical; Disease Models, Animal; Drug Stability; Erythrocytes; Guinea Pigs; Hemolysis; Histamine; Injections, Intravenous; Male; Molecular Structure; Particle Size; Polyethylene Glycols; Rats, Wistar; Sheep; Solvents; Stearates; Surface Properties; Tissue Distribution

Alpha-Asarone is clinically used as a commercial intravenous formulation (CA-AREs). However, Polysorbate 80, a solubilizing agent contained in the formulation has been reported to be toxic. To enhance the aqueous solubility of ARE and to reduce the toxicity of CA-AREs caused by solubilizing agents, ARE loaded soybean phosphatidylcholine-deoxysodium cholate-mixed micelles (ARE-SPC-DC-MMs) were prepared and characterized in this study. Furthermore, pharmacokinetics and tissue distributions of ARE-SPC-DC-MMs and CA-AREs were also investigated. Additionally, the anaphylaxis of both of the two formulations was evaluated. The mean size of mixed micelles (ARE-SPC-DC-MMs) was 24.74 +/- 1.14 nm and the ARE solubility within the mixed micelles was approximately 30-fold greater than that of free drug in water. ARE-SPC-DC-MMs showed pharmacokinetic parameters similar to CA-AREs. AUC(0-->t) (mg/L x min) of ARE-SPC-DC-MMs was lower in spleen than that of CA-AREs (p < 0.05) while it was greater in the lung (p < 0.05). There was no significant difference in other organs. These findings demonstrated that in comparison with CA-AREs, ARE-SPC-DC-MMs had similar properties in vivo, but led to higher accumulation of ARE in lungs. Meanwhile there was nearly no anaphylactic reaction caused by ARE-SPC-DC-MMs, but reactions could be observed in the CA-AREs group with significantly higher histamine release. In conclusion, ARE-SPC-DC-MMs could be an excellent substitute for commercially available CA-AREs for intravenous administration.

Topics: Allylbenzene Derivatives; Anaphylaxis; Animals; Anisoles; Area Under Curve; Chemistry, Pharmaceutical; Cholates; Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; Excipients; Fibrinolytic Agents; Guinea Pigs; Histamine; Injections, Intravenous; Male; Mice; Micelles; Particle Size; Phosphatidylcholines; Rats; Rats, Wistar; Tissue Distribution