Experimental investigation and oral bioavailability enhancement of nano-sized curcumin by using supercritical anti-solvent process

[Display omitted] •Curcumin is nanosized by supercritical antisolvent (SAS) process.•Curcumin nanoparticles were coated with Tween 80 during SAS process.•Effect of SAS process parameters on particle size was investigated.•Solubility and dissolution profile of SAS-processed curcumin were enhanced.•Oral bioavailability of SAS-processed curcumin was increased in male Wistar rats. The biomedical applications of curcumin (CUR) are limited due to its poor oral bioavailability. In this work, CUR nanoparticles were successfully prepared by combining the supercritical anti-solvent (SAS) process with Tween 80 as a solubilizing agent and permeation enhancer. Different processing parameters that can govern the mean particle size and size distribution of nanoparticles were well investigated by manipulating the types of solvents, mixing vessel pressure, mixing vessel temperature, CO2 flow rate, solution flow rate and solution concentration. Solid state characterization was done by Fourier Transform infrared spectroscopy, differential scanning calorimetry, dynamic light scattering, scanning electron microscopy, and powder X-ray diffraction study. Solubility and dissolution profile of SAS-processed CUR were found to be significantly increased in comparison with native CUR. Further, a validated ultra-performance liquid chromatographic method with quadrupole-time of flight-mass spectrometry was developed to investigate the pharmacokinetic parameters after a single oral dose (100mg/kg) administration of CUR (before/after SAS-processed) in male Wistar rats. From the plasma concentration vs. time profile graph, oral bioavailability of SAS-processed CUR was found to be increased approximately 11.6-fold (p