Effect of Charge Carrier Lipid on Skin Penetration, Retention, and Hair Growth of Topically Applied Finasteride-Containing Liposomes

The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of charge carrier lipid on the skin penetration, retention, and hair growth of topically applied finasteride-containing liposomes. Finasteride-containing liposomes were prepared by traditional thin film hydration method using Phospholipon$^{(R)}$ 85 G and cholesterol with or without charge carrier lipid (1,2 dimyristoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphate or 1,2-dioleoyl-trimethylammonium-propane for anionic and cationic charge, respectively). Freshly prepared finasteride-containing liposome suspension was applied on the hairless mouse skin, and skin penetration and retention were measured using Keshary-Chien diffusion cell. Non-liposomal formulation (ethanol 10% solution containing 0.5 mg/ml of FNS) was also used as a control. The amount of finasteride in the diffusion cell and mouse skin was measured by HPLC. The hair growth was evaluated using depilated male C57BL/6N mice. Mean particle size of all finasteride-containing liposomes was less than a micron, and polydispersity index revealed size homogeneity. Skin penetration and retention studies showed that significantly less amount of finasteride was penetrated when applied as anionic liposome while more amount of the drug was retained. Specifically, in liposome prepared with 10% anionic charge carrier lipid, penetration was 12.99 ${\mu}g/cm^2$ while retention was 79.23 ${\mu}g/cm^2$ after 24 h of application. In hair growth study, finasteride-containing anionic liposomes showed moderate efficacy, but the efficacy was not found when applied as cationic liposomes. In conclusion, topical application of finasteride using anionic liposome formulation appears to be useful option for the treatment of androgenetic alopecia to avoid systemic side effects of the drug.