Challenges and Proven Recommendations of Praziquantel Formulation

Background. Schistosomiasis, ranked second to malaria as one of the crucial parasitic infections in the world, infects close to 240 million people as at 2019. Praziquantel, an oral anthelmintic, is the first-line drug for the treatment of schistosomiasis. Although the drug is safe and effective, the formulated tablets come with some limitations such as low bioavailability and bitter taste. This literature review aims to provide information on how to improve the issues of solubility, low bioavailability, and bitter taste associated with the praziquantel formulation and, subsequently, to be helpful in improving patient’s compliance. Materials and Methods. For gathering all pertinent data in this review on improving the praziquantel formulation, the following databases were used: Google Scholar, Science Direct, Scopus, PubMed, Springer Link, Elsevier, and Wiley online library. Results. Literature revealed that in improving the bioavailability of praziquantel, loading the drug with hydrogenated castor oil solid lipid nanoparticles has shown to be effective in prolonging systemic circulation from 7.6 to 95.9 hours after oral administration. Moreover, employing the solid dispersion technique using the fusion method increases the bioavailability of praziquantel about twice as much. Furthermore, incorporating a superdisintegrant or more than one disintegrant to the formulation can enhance the release of praziquantel. The addition of hydroxypropyl-beta-cyclodextrin (HP-β-CD) and sucralose as sweeteners can mask the bitter taste of praziquantel. Conclusion. The formulation approaches outlined in this review can be employed to greatly enhance the solubility, bioavailability, and taste of praziquantel. Although several techniques to improve praziquantel formulation have been widely studied, further studies on the release profile and compatibility studies with other excipients need to be investigated.