Synthesis , Characterization and Hepatoprotective Activity of Neem Gold Nanoparticles for Improved Efficacy and Sustained Drug Release Profile of Azidothymidine

HIV is a retrovirus which belongs to the family of lentiviruses. From the beginning of the HIV epidemic almost 75 million people have been infected and about 36 million people have died of HIV. Globally, 35.3 million people were living with HIV at the end of 2012. Gold nanoparticles (A. indica-GNPs) were synthesized from leaf extract of Azadirachta indica by microwave assistance. Surface chemistry of monodispersed A.indica GNPs (30-40nm) was explored as natural linkers for attachment of AZT and verified by infrared spectroscopy. A.indica GNP-AZT nanoconjugate was found to exhibit 94.6% drug loading capacity and followed 1 order of release kinetics at physiological pH. Hepato-protective property of A.indica GNPs was studied by cytokine analysis on an in vitro model of primary co-culture of rat hepatocyte-kupffer cells by ELISA. A. indica GNPs demonstrated upregulation of Interleukin (IL)-10 and downregulation of Tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α with controlled IL-6 secretion in lipopolysaccharide (LPS) induced co-cultures; thereby persuading optimal interplay of pro and anti-inflammatory cytokines and rendered hepato-protectivity. Quantification of p24 antigen done by ELISA for assessing anti-viral activity suggested a 20% increment (P<0.05) in anti-viral efficacy of AZT when conjugated to A. indica GNPs. Thus biogenic A.indica GNPs can be looked upon as an effective candidate to improvise the treatment strategies against HIV infection.