Abstract

Nanoparticle engineering offers promising methods for the formulation of poorly water soluble drug compounds. The aim of the present work was to enhance dissolution and oral bioavailability of poorly water-soluble Raloxifene Hydrochloride (RH) by preparing stable nanoparticles. Mechanism of dissolution enhancement was also investigated. nanoparticles were produced by combining the antisolvent precipitation and high pressure homogenization (HPH) approaches in the presence of HPMC E5 and SDS (2:1, w/w). Then the nanosuspensions were converted into dry powders by spray-drying. The effect of process variables on particle size and physical state of drug were investigated. The physicochemical properties of raw RH and nanoparticles were characterized by Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM). The images of SEM revealed spherical RH nanoparticles. Nanoparticles showed good dissolution profile. The process by combining the antisolvent precipitation under sonication and HPH was produce small, uniform and stable nanoparticles which markedly enhanced dissolution rate.