Production and safety assessment of liposomal vesicles containing Antimony and Arsenic

Abstract

Arsenic (As) and Antimony (Sb) have biomedical applications, As, in the form of arsenic trioxide is the gold standard in the treatment of relapsed acute promyelocytic leukemia, while the metal Sb, in the form of antimony tartrate, has been used for many years in the treatment of leishmaniasis. Because they are chemical elements, with similar physical and chemical characteristics, producing a liposome containing these two elements was the objective of this work. The liposomes were obtained by the ethanol injection method. The liposomes obtained had an average vesicle size of 135.8 ± 0.03 nm, polydispersity index of 0.152 ± 0.04, Zeta potential of - 30.51 ± 0.03 and pH of 7.15 ± 0.18. The content of the actives was determined by mass spectrometry, being 0.242 ± 0.01 mg/mL and 0.254 ± 0.03 mg/mL, for As and Sb, respectively. The formulation maintained stability for up to 60 days when stored at room temperature and in the refrigerator. Safety assays of the formulation (MTT and NO) indicated that, at the concentration evaluated, there was no cell viability or proliferation, but the liposomes protected the cells (human fibroblasts (HFF-1) regarding inflammatory processes.