Disposition of Aerosolized Liposomal Amphotericin B

Amphotericin B (AmB) is an important drug for the treatment of fungal infection, but toxicity limits the lung tissue doses which may be achieved through intravenous administration. Although incorporation of AmB in liposomes reduces these effects and increases the therapeutic index for intravenous administration, targeted delivery to lung tissues via inhaled liposomal AmB aerosol may be a more effective approach. Aerosolization of liposomal amphotericin B targets the lungs, the organs first infested by many fungi. Development of optimal aerosolized liposomal AmB therapies requires a better understanding of the effect that liposome surface charge has on lung clearance kinetics. In this work we evaluated the clearance kinetics and organ distribution of inhaled liposomal AmB in male Balb/C mice. Mice were exposed via nose only to AmB-containing liposomal aerosols having positive, negative, or neutral surface charge characteristics. The formulations were aerosolized using a Collison nebulizer. Groups of animals were euthanized at predetermined times and the lungs and other organs were analyzed for AmB. AmB was not detected in serum and other organs such as kidneys, liver, and brain. The disposition of neutral and positive liposomal amphotericin B in lungs followed biexponential kinetics. The alpha and beta phase half-lives for positive liposomes were 1.3 and 15.1 days, respectively, and 2.3 and 22 days for neutral liposomes. AmB delivered via negative liposomes exhibited monoexponential clearance with a half-life of 4.5 days. These results suggest that toxic side effects in nontarget tissues are minimal and may indicate a potential for long term protection against fungal infections.