Towards using mesoporous silica as a drug delivery system for chlorpromazine ibuprofenate ionic liquid

Abstract

In pharmacies around the world, solid-state pharmaceuticals sit on shelves changing their crystalline structures day by day through polymorphic transformations (polymorphism is the event of a substance crystallizing into more than two crystalline forms). As a result, a drug’s effectiveness may change during shelf life due to a decrease in aqueous solubility which may lead to a limited bioavailability. These disadvantages can be resolved through the conversion of solid-state drugs into a liquid state compound (ionic liquid, IL) with a greater therapeutic effect on users. ILs can be synthesized by combining two different pharmaceuticals into one single compound to create ILs with dual functionality, in that both parent drugs retain their functions.
The IL of interest for this project is chlorpromazine ibuprofenate which is synthesized through the metathesis reaction between chlorpromazine hydrochloride and sodium ibuprofenate. Spectroscopic methods (Nuclear Magnetic Resonance and Infrared Spectroscopy) are employed to determine the purity and structure of the synthesized IL while the supported ionic liquid phase (SILP) methodology is used as a potential delivery strategy. This procedure is favorable for a highly viscous liquid drug. Its adsorption onto solid supports (e.g., mesoporous silica) consolidates the benefits of the liquid state compound with the ease of transfer and handling. Investigating the leaching of the IL from the solid support into simulated body fluids (e.g., simulated gastric fluid) will test the potential for this drug’s delivery mechanism.