Pharmacokinetics, biodistribution, in vitro cytotoxicity and biocompatibility of Vitamin E TPGS coated trans resveratrol liposomes

[Display omitted] •Liposomal formulations showed sustained release up to 48h without burst release.•RSV-TPGS-Lipo showed significantly higher cytotoxicity than RSV and RSV-Lipo.•RSV, RSV-Lipo and RSV-TPGS-Lipo are haemocompatible/safe for i.v. administration.•RSV-TPGS-Lipo showed higher AUC, t1/2 and MRT than RSV and RSV-Lipo.•Brain accumulation of RSV-Lipo and RSV-TPGS-Lipo was significantly higher than RSV. The clinical application of trans resveratrol (RSV) in glioma treatment is largely limited because of its rapid metabolism, fast elimination from systemic circulation and low biological half life. Therefore, the objectives of this study were to enhance the circulation time, biological half life and passive brain targeting of RSV using d-α-tocopheryl polyethylene glycol 1000 succinate (TPGS) coated liposomes (RSV-TPGS-Lipo). In addition to basic liposomal characterizations, in vitro anticancer potential against C6 glioma cell lines and cellular internalization of liposomes were carried out by MTT assay and confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM), respectively. Pharmacokinetics and tissue distribution studies were also carried out after intravenous administration in Charles Foster rats. RSV-TPGS-Lipo 2 showed significantly higher cytotoxicity than RSV-Lipo (uncoated liposomes) and RSV. Both uncoated and TPGS coated liposomes showed excellent cellular uptake. RSV, RSV-Lipo and RSV-TPGS-Lipo 2 were found to be haemocompatible and safe after i.v. administration. Area under the curve (AUC) and plasma half life (t1/2) after i.v. administration of RSV-TPGS-Lipo 2 was found to be approximately 5.73 and 6.72 times higher than that of RSV-Lipo as well as 29.94 and 29.66 times higher than that of RSV, respectively. Thus, the outcome indicates that RSV-TPGS-Lipo 2 is a promising carrier for glioma treatment with improved pharmacokinetic parameters. Moreover, brain accumulation of RSV-Lipo and RSV-TPGS-Lipo 2 was found to be significantly higher than that of RSV (P