Design of long acting invasomal nanovesicles for improved transdermal permeation and bioavailability of asenapine maleate for the chronic treatment of schizophrenia

[Display omitted] •Invasomes containing limonene had superior transdermal permeation compared to other carriers.•Asenapine bioavailability has been enhanced from 3.5% to 54.5%.•Asenapine transdermal application using invasomes achieved a long action till 72 h. Asenapine Maleate (ASPM) is a second generation antipsychotic used for the management of schizophrenia but with very limited oral bioavailability due to its extensive first pass metabolism. Transdermal administration of ASPM using nanocarriers like invasomes might offer an excellent alternative to its oral administration with enhanced bioavailability and a sustained action. ASPM-loaded invasomes were successfully prepared by thin film hydration technique; meanwhile the penetration enhancing effect of terpenes (cineole and limonene) was compared to hydromiscible cosolvent (Transcutol®). Soft nanovesicles containing Transcutol® displayed smaller particle sizes than invasomes containing limonene and cineole while invasomes showed higher efficiency to encapsulate asenapine. Ex- vivo skin permeation revealed that invasomes with limonene are more efficient than those with cineole for the transdermal delivery of asenapine. The optimum nano-invasomes formulation contained 1% Limonene and showed particle size of 82 ± 0.6 nm, entrapment efficiency of 56.6 ± 1.5 % and transdermal flux of 3401.6 ± 604.2 (μg/h.cm2). Transmission electron microscopy of the selected formulation showed uniform spherical vesicles with intense outline and lighter core and FTIR study emphasized that ASPM was completely incorporated within the vesicles. The in- vivo pharmacokinetic study revealed that transdermal invasomes achieved 2 folds higher Cmax compared to oral suspension and delayed the Tmax from 1.5 h to around 4 h. The bioavailability of asenapine loaded invasomes after transdermal application was significantly improved to 54.5% compared to the 3.6 % achieved with the oral administration and exceeding the bioavailability of sublingual tablets currently available in the market and exhibited sustained release kinetics over 72 h which permits reduction of dosing frequency to increase patient adherence to medication.