RESUMO
<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To evaluate the effect of different preparation methods on the encapsulation efficiency (EE) and drug loading (DL) of paclitaxel-loaded polybutylcyanoacrylate nanoparticles (PTX-PBCA-NPs) and optimize the preparation of PTX-PBCA-NPs.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>With DL and EE as the major indexes, the qualities of PTX-PBCA-NPs produced by the interfacial polymerization and emulsion polymerization method were compared. The optimized prescription was obtained by orthogonal design.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The ranges of EE of PTX-PBCA-NPs with the two methods were both 94.39%-99.23%. The highest DL with interfacial polymerization was (1.07-/+0.03)%, as compared to (0.86-/+0.01)% with emulsion polymerization. The optimized preparation conditions resulted in the mean size of PTX-PBCA-NPs of 235.6 nm, DL of 0.80%, and EE of 95.71%.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>The EE of PTX-PBCA-NPs prepared by the above two methods is consistent with the requirement of the Pharmacopoeia of China, and PTX-PBCA-NPs containing higher DL can be obtained via interfacial polymerization.</p>