Published Paper Details:

The eye is a delicate organ with low permeability, short precorneal residence time, and small area for absorption, which poses significant barriers to drug delivery. Traditional ocular delivery systems are constrained by tear and blinking, leading to blurred vision and untimed release events. In situ ophthalmic gels have been developed to overcome these challenges, allowing sustained drug release at the target site. These gels are in solution form before administration and convert to a gel under physiological conditions. This review discusses the anatomy and physiology of the eye, challenges of ocular drug delivery, types of in situ gelling systems, mechanisms of gel formation, types of smart polymers, and methods for evaluating polymeric in situ gels. The study aims to optimize self-assembled nanomicelles incorporating latanoprost (LAT), an anti-glaucoma drug, using a two-level, two-factor full factorial design. The nanomicelles have a spherical morphology and a 77.5% encapsulation efficiency, demonstrating sustained LAT release over 12 hours. In normotensive rabbits, the nanomicelles reduced IOP by up to 40% for three days, significantly longer than the IOP-lowering efficacy of XALATAN eye drops. These findings suggest that self-assembled nanomicelles can enhance ocular bioavailability and extend the therapeutic duration of LAT while providing physical stability.