European journal of pharmaceutical sciences : official journal of the European Federation for Pharmaceutical Sciences
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Salvianolic acid B (SalB) represents the most characteristic constituent of Salvia miltiorrhiza Bge. with a strong free radicals scavenger activity. This property may be useful in the treatment of some severe chronic diseases, where there is an imbalance of reactive oxygen species formation and where intracellular reactive oxygen and nitrogen species level can cause severe cell damage and even cell death. In particular, SalB can protect against the oxidative stress as well as the antioxidant superoxide dismutase and reduced activity of glutathione, important determinants of neuropathological and behavioural consequences in neuropathic pain. ⋯ SalB-loaded liposomes were characterised in terms of particle size, polydispersity index, encapsulation efficacy and morphology. According to the in vivo studies, encapsulation, especially into PEGylated liposomes, increased and prolonged the antihyperalgesic activity 30 min after i.p. administration and the effect was still significant at 45 min. Thus, PEGylated formulation ameliorated the performance of drug delaying, increasing and prolonging in time its antihyperalgesic effect.