Our research group have developed and patented a matrix system, suitable for drug delivery and 3D cell culture, based on the application of a technology consisting in performing a thermal treatment on compact units including as excipients a specific type of cross-linked, water-insoluble polyacrylic polymers; the thermal treatment, under appropriate conditions, generates a monolithic hydrophilic matrix able to swell in aqueous medium at neutral or alkaline pH, forming a hydrogel very resistant to erosion. This versatile matrix may be employed in systems for drug delivery. Indeed, the inclusion of a hydrophobic component, such as ethylcellulose, in the composition makes the matrix able to control the release rate of active substances in the intestinal medium. Moreover, when including in the composition a pH regulator, the polymer forming the matrix manages to swell even in the stomach’s acidic environment. Tablets with this composition manage to float immediately in the gastric fluid owing to their low density, to absorb water and to enlarge, creating the conditions for gastroretention, associated to drug controlled release for up to several hours. The technology has also been employed and patented for the preparation of matrices for 3D cell cultures: in this case, compacts including the polyacrylic polymer, sodium bicarbonate and sodium chloride, subjected to thermal treatment and subsequent leaching of the water-soluble components, create a porous hydrophilic scaffold, moist heat sterilizable, transparent and biocompatible, which has been successfully employed for 3D culturing of different cell types, and suitable for drug testing. Our technology can be manufactured with easily available, low-cost components, and the heating process, fundamental for matrix formation, may be carried out using the common industrial heating systems. The temperature to which the compacts are heated and the duration of the thermal treatment may be set to modulate the features of the matrix, achieving either the appropriate drug release rate or the mechanical properties most suitable for the cultured cells, depending on its application.
A heat-generated polymeric matrix technology transferred to drug delivery and cell culture systems
S. Baldassari;G. Ailuno;G. Caviglioli
2024-01-01
Abstract
Our research group have developed and patented a matrix system, suitable for drug delivery and 3D cell culture, based on the application of a technology consisting in performing a thermal treatment on compact units including as excipients a specific type of cross-linked, water-insoluble polyacrylic polymers; the thermal treatment, under appropriate conditions, generates a monolithic hydrophilic matrix able to swell in aqueous medium at neutral or alkaline pH, forming a hydrogel very resistant to erosion. This versatile matrix may be employed in systems for drug delivery. Indeed, the inclusion of a hydrophobic component, such as ethylcellulose, in the composition makes the matrix able to control the release rate of active substances in the intestinal medium. Moreover, when including in the composition a pH regulator, the polymer forming the matrix manages to swell even in the stomach’s acidic environment. Tablets with this composition manage to float immediately in the gastric fluid owing to their low density, to absorb water and to enlarge, creating the conditions for gastroretention, associated to drug controlled release for up to several hours. The technology has also been employed and patented for the preparation of matrices for 3D cell cultures: in this case, compacts including the polyacrylic polymer, sodium bicarbonate and sodium chloride, subjected to thermal treatment and subsequent leaching of the water-soluble components, create a porous hydrophilic scaffold, moist heat sterilizable, transparent and biocompatible, which has been successfully employed for 3D culturing of different cell types, and suitable for drug testing. Our technology can be manufactured with easily available, low-cost components, and the heating process, fundamental for matrix formation, may be carried out using the common industrial heating systems. The temperature to which the compacts are heated and the duration of the thermal treatment may be set to modulate the features of the matrix, achieving either the appropriate drug release rate or the mechanical properties most suitable for the cultured cells, depending on its application.
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