Nanoparticles of quercetin-gellan gum conjugate for the controlled delivery of fluconazole.

The aim of the study was to formulate the polymeric nanoparticles for the controlled delivery of fluconazole (FCZ) to enhance its absorption, mucosal adherence, and bioavailability. FCZ-loaded gellan gum-quercetin conjugate (GQC) nanoparticles (FCZ-loaded NGQ) were prepared by ionic gelatin method using GQC, surfactants, co-surfactants, and cross-linker. The nanoparticles were then characterized by various physical and chemical analytical tools such as 1H NMR, FTIR, XRD, DSC, TGA, particle size, zeta potential, and SEM analysis. All the nanoparticles have a nanosized range from 108 nm to 123 nm with a zeta potential of -12 mV to -20 mV which shows their stability. The NGQ3 (optimized formulation) loaded with FCZ have a PDI of 0.20 ± 0.02 and % entrapment efficiency of 32.3 ± 2.8 %. These studies also showed promising results of 85 % drug release, the value for zero order kinetics of R2 was 0.999, mucosal adherence of 24 h, and the highest values of permeation was shown by NGQ3 of 60 %. The improved antifungal activity of prepared NGQ3-DL against Candida albicans was observed compared to the pure drug. The nanoparticles may offer enhanced bioavailability and controlled release of FCZ, making them a potential breakthrough in managing FCZ resistant infections.