Fungal infections are an important cause of morbidity and pose a serious health concern especially in immunocompromised patients. Luliconazole (LUL) is a topical imidazole antifungal drug with a broad spectrum of activity. To overcome the limitations of conventional dosage forms, LUL loaded lyotropic liquid crystalline nanoparticles (LCNP) were formulated and characterized using a three-factor, five-level Central Composite Design of Response Surface Methodology. LUL loaded LCNP showed particle size of 181 ± 12.3 nm with an entrapment efficiency of 91.49 ± 1.61 %. The LUL-LCNP dispersion in-vitro drug release showed extended release up to 54 h. Ex-vivo skin permeation studies revealed transdermal flux value (J) of LUL-LCNP gel (7.582 μg/h/cm²) 2 folds higher compared to marketed cream (3.3706 μg/h/cm²). The retention of LUL in the stratum corneum was ∼1.5 folds higher and ∼2 folds higher in the epidermis and other deeper layers in comparison to the marketed cream. The total amount of drug penetrated (AUC_0-∞) with LCNP formulation was 4.7 folds higher in epidermis and 6.5 folds higher in dermis than marketed cream. The study's findings vouch that LCNP can be a promising and effective carrier system for the delivery of antifungal drugs with enhanced skin permeation.

真菌感染是发病的一个重要原因，并造成严重的健康问题，尤其是在免疫功能低下的患者中。卢立康唑 (LUL) 是一种外用咪唑类抗真菌药，具有广谱活性。为了克服传统剂型的局限性，使用响应面方法的三因素、五水平中心复合设计来配制和表征负载 LUL 的溶致液晶纳米粒子 (LCNP)。加载 LUL 的 LCNP 显示粒径为 181 ± 12.3 nm，截留效率为 91.49 ± 1.61 %。LUL-LCNP 分散体外药物释放显示延长释放达 54 小时。离体皮肤渗透研究显示 LUL-LCNP 凝胶的透皮通量值 (J) (7.582 μg/h/cm ²) 与市售乳膏 (3.3706 μg/h/cm ² )相比高 2 倍。与市售乳霜相比，LUL 在角质层中的保留率高出约 1.5 倍，在表皮和其他更深的层中高出约 2 倍。与市售乳膏相比，LCNP 制剂渗透的药物总量 (AUC _0-∞ ) 在表皮中高 4.7 倍，在真皮中高 6.5 倍。该研究的结果证实，LCNP 可以成为一种有前途且有效的载体系统，用于递送具有增强皮肤渗透性的抗真菌药物。