DESIGN AND CHARACTERIZATION OF A BIOCOMPATIBLE PHYSICAL HYDROGEL BASED ON SCLEROGLUCAN FOR TOPICAL DRUG DELIVERY. (15th October 2017)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Paolicelli, Patrizia; Varani, Gabriele; Pacelli, Settimio; Ogliani, Elisa; Nardoni, Martina; Petralito, Stefania; Adrover, Alessandra; Casadei, Maria Antonietta
• Is Part Of: Carbohydrate polymers. Volume 174(2017)
• Page Start: 960
• Page End: 969
• Publication Date: 2017-10-15
• Subjects: Carboxymethyl scleroglucan -- physical hydrogels -- topical formulation -- diffusion coefficient -- Fickian and non-Fickian transport models; Polysaccharides -- Periodicals; Polysaccharides -- Periodicals; Polysaccharides -- Périodiques; Electronic journals; 547.78
• DOI: 10.1016/j.carbpol.2017.07.008
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0144-8617

Abstract

Highlights: Carboxymethyl scleroglucan hydrogels are suitable for topical drug delivery Drug loading influences the rheological properties of Scl-CM hydrogels The release mechanism of the loaded drug was mathematically modelled Abstract: Physical hydrogels of a high-carboxymethylated derivative of scleroglucan (Scl-CM300 ) were investigated as potential systems for topical drug delivery using three different therapeutic molecules (fluconazole, diclofenac and betamethasone). Rheological tests were carried out on drug-loaded hydrogels along with in-vitro release studies in a vertical Franz cell, in order to investigate if and how different drugs may influence the rheological and release properties of Scl-CM300 hydrogels. Experimental results and theoretical modeling highlighted that, in the absence of drug/polymer interactions (as for fluconazole and betamethasone) Scl-CM300 matrices offer negligible resistance to drug diffusion and a Fickian transport model can be adopted to estimate the effective diffusion coefficient in the swollen hydrogel. The presence of weak drug/hydrogel chemical bonds (as for diclofenac), confirmed by frequency sweep tests, slow down the drug release kinetics and a non-Fickian two-phase transport model has to be adopted. In-vivo experiments on rabbits evidenced optimal skin tolerability of Scl-CM300 hydrogels after topical application.