Formulation and characterization of nanoemulsion of olanzapine for intranasal delivery.

The objective was to formulate an olanzapine nanoemulsion that could potentially deliver the drug directly to the brain following intranasal administration. The nanoemulsions were prepared using the water titration method. The mucoadhesive character was imparted by the addition of 0.5%w/w chitosan and 0.5%w/w polycarbophil and was characterized for drug content, pH, percentage transmittance, globule size, zeta potential, and PDI. The composition (%w/w) of the optimized olanzapine nanoemulsion was capmul MCM, tween 80, and a mixture of 1:1 ratio of polyethylene glycol 400 and ethanol, and aqueous phase in a ratio of 15:35:17.5:32.5. The optimized olanzapine nanoemulsion exhibited a high diffusion coefficient and no nasal cilio-toxicity. The drug release followed the Higuchi model. The optimized nanoemulsions were found to be stable for 3 months.