Dexamethasone and Dexamethasone Phosphate: Effect on DMPC Membrane Models

CÁMARA, CANDELARIA INES; CROSIO, MATÍAS ARIEL; JUAREZ, ANA VALERIA; WILKE, NATALIA

Pharmaceutics

MDPI

Año: 2023 vol. 15

examethasone (Dex) and Dexamethasone phosphate (Dex-P) are synthetic glucocorticoidswith high anti-inflammatory and immunosuppressive actions that gained visibility because theyreduce the mortality in critical patients with COVID-19 connected to assisted breathing. They havebeen widely used for the treatment of several diseases and in patients under chronic treatments, thus, it is important to understand their interaction with membranes, the first barrier when these drugs get into the body. Here, the effect of Dex and Dex-P on dimyiristoylphophatidylcholine (DMPC) membranes were studied using Langmuir films and vesicles. Our results indicate that the presence of Dex in DMPC monolayers makes them more compressible and less reflective, induces the appearance of aggregates, and suppresses the Liquid Expanded/Liquid Condensed (LE/LC) phase transition.The phosphorylated drug, Dex-P, also induces the formation of aggregates in DMPC/Dex-P films, but without disturbing the LE/LC phase transit