Oral Microemulsion Based Delivery System for Reducing Reproductive and Kidney Toxicity of Tripterygium Glycosides

To reduce the toxic effects and achieve efficiency of Tripterygium glycosides, an oral microemulsion was designed. After estimating its stability and characterisation, an animal experiment was held to evaluate its toxicity in vivo, using male and female Sprague Dawley rats. The maximum loading amount of microemulsion to Tripterygium glycosides was 18.87 mg/ml. And comparing to control, the Tripterygium glycoside microemulsion can maintain a normal level of the number of sperms, the weight of testicle, testosterone (∼2.5 ng/mL) and BUN (∼5 mmol/L) to male rats. For female rats, it can prevent the ovary to be atrophy and keep FSH to be stable (>2100 ng/L). The weaker injury induced by drug-loaded microemulsion to rats also could be observed in histological sections to kidney and reproductive organs. Although the blank microemulsion had slight toxicity, it mitigated the toxicity of Tripterygium glycosides to kidney and reproductive system.