Multi-niosomes as innovative combinatorial therapy for pulmonary tuberculosis: a study on chemico-physical properties.
In this project we will develop a new niosome-based multi-drug delivery system loading simultaneously two anti Mycobacterium tuberculosis-drugs, formed by different liposomes glued together in multi-compartment clusters. The innovation is connected both with the modular structure of the carrier and with the possibility to transport and deliver different drugs simultaneously towards the same target, encapsulating them in the different niosomes forming the aggregates. It is recognized that inhalation of drug-loaded liposomes offers a potential value in antituberculosis(TB)-therapy. Multicompartment niosomal clusters, with size larger than a single vesicles, have been demonstrated to possess an intrinsic selectivity towards macrophages, thus representing an emerging platform for the intracellular delivery of antiTB drugs to the primary site of infection. The opportunity of combining an increased efficacy of intracellular delivery with the ability of carrying several different active molecules, simultaneously and with a controlled stoichiometry, to the same target could represent a significant breakthrough. Nowadays, the increasing spread of biocompatible niosome-based drug nanocarriers is a result of the unique properties of surfactants and of the vesicular structure. Here we will tackle advantage of the large variety of surfactant to optimize the formulation of niosomes in terms of physico-chemical properties of vesicle bilayer, stability of the vesicles and drug encapsulation efficiency, with the aim to improve their biocompatibility and ability to entrap drugs, optimizing also their pharmacokinetics and therapeutic index.