Preventive effects of simvastatin nanoliposome on isoproterenol-induced cardiac remodeling in mice

In this study, simvastatin (SMV) and SMV nanoliposome (SMV-Lipo) were given to male BALB/c mice by either intragastric (i.g.) or intraperitoneal (i.p.) administration, and their effects on isoproterenol (ISO)-induced cardiac remodeling were compared. The results indicate that by i.p. administration, the SMV-Lipo at an equal SMV dose exhibited more significant inhibitory effects than the crude SMV on cardiac hypertrophy, fibrosis and inflammation. Comparing the SMV-Lipo on different administration regimens, i.p. group showed more significant inhibitory effects on cardiac remodeling than i.g. group. In addition, pharmacokinetic studies revealed that SMV-Lipo administrated by either i.p. or i.g. more significantly improved the plasma SMV concentration than the crude SMV. Therefore, the SMV-Lipo significantly enhanced the inhibitory effects of SMV on cardiac remodeling resulted from the enhanced absorption of SMV by nanoliposome formulation, and i.p. was better than i.g. administration.