Interaction of Ibuprofen with Partially Unfolded Bovine Serum Albumin in the Presence of Ionic Micelles and Oligosaccharides at Different λ_ex and pH: A Spectroscopic Analysis

The interaction between the plasma protein bovine serum albumin (BSA) and the drug ibuprofen (IBU) has been investigated at three different pH values (7.4, 6.5, and 8.0) in the presence of oligosaccharides and surfactants. The interaction analysis of BSA with oligosaccharides and surfactants has also been studied in the absence of the drug ibuprofen. The results obtained give convenient and efficient access to understand the mechanism of binding of ibuprofen to BSA, and the major forces involved are found to be hydrophobic forces, hydrogen bonding and ionic interactions. In addition to that, the formation of inclusion complexes of ibuprofen with oligosaccharides (β-CD and 2-HP-β-CD) has been observed, which has depicted that due to the hydrophobic nature of ibuprofen, it becomes more soluble in the presence of oligosaccharides, but due to the larger size of the inclusion complexes, these could not be able to access the hydrophobic pocket of BSA where tryptophan-212 (Trp-212) resides. The binding interaction between BSA and ibuprofen is observed in the presence of surfactants (SDS and CTAB), which partially unfold the protein. Non-radiative fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) from Trp and Tyr residues of BSA in the presence of an anionic surfactant SDS to ibuprofen has depicted that there is a possibility of drug binding even in the partially unfolded state of BSA protein. Furthermore, the distance between the protein and the drug has been calculated from the FRET efficiency, which gives a comprehensive overview of ibuprofen binding to BSA even in its partially denatured state. The hydrophobic drug binding to the partially unfolded serum albumin protein (BSA) supports the “necklace and bead structures” model and opens up a new direction of drug loading and delivery system, which will have critical therapeutic applications in the efficient delivery of pharmacologically prominent drugs

Unraveling the Interaction of Diflunisal with Cyclodextrin and Lysozyme by Fluorescence Spectroscopy

Understanding the interaction between the drug:carrier complex and protein is essential for the development of a new drug-delivery system. However, the majority of reports are based on an understanding of interactions between the drug and protein. Here, we present our findings on the interaction of the anti-inflammatory drug diflunisal with the drug carrier cyclodextrin (CD) and the protein lysozyme, utilizing steady-state and time-resolved fluorescence spectroscopy. Our findings reveal a different pattern of molecular interaction between the inclusion complex of β-CD (β-CD) or hydroxypropyl-β-CD (HP-β-CD) (as the host) and diflunisal (as the guest) in the presence of protein lysozyme. The quantum yield for the 1:2 guest:host complex is twice that of the 1:1 guest:host complex, indicating a more stable hydrophobic microenvironment created in the 1:2 complex. Consequently, the nonradiative decay pathway is significantly reduced. The interaction is characterized by ultrafast solvation dynamics and time-resolved fluorescence resonance energy transfer. The solvation dynamics of the lysozyme becomes 10% faster under the condition of binding with the drug, indicating a negligible change in the polar environment after binding. In addition, the fluorescence lifetime of diflunisal (acceptor) is increased by 50% in the presence of the lysozyme (donor), which indicates that the drug molecule is bound to the binding pocket on the surface of the protein, and the average distance between active tryptophan in the hydrophobic region and diflunisal is calculated to be approximately 50 Å. Excitation and emission matrix spectroscopy reveals that the tryptophan emission increases 3–5 times in the presence of both diflunisal and CD. This indicates that the tryptophan of lysozyme may be present in a more hydrophobic environment in the presence of both diflunisal and CD. Our observations on the interaction of diflunisal with β-CD and lysozyme are well supported by molecular dynamics simulation. Results from this study may have an impact on the development of a better drug-delivery system in the future. It also reveals a fundamental molecular mechanism of interaction of the drug–carrier complex with the protein