1 research outputs found
Spermidine Cross-Linked Hydrogels as a Controlled Release Biomimetic Approach for Cloxacillin
The
intrinsic ability of albumin to bind active substances in the
physiological fluids has been explored to endow hydrogels with improved
capability to regulate drug release. To develop such biomimetic-functional
hydrogels, it is critical that albumin conformation is not altered
and that the protein remains retained inside the hydrogel keeping
its conformational freedom, i.e., it should be not chemically cross-linked.
Thus, the hydrogels were prepared with various proportions of albumin
by physical cross-linking of anionic polysaccharides (gellan gum and
chondroitin sulfate) with the cationic endogen polyamine spermidine
under mild conditions in order to prevent albumin denaturation. Texture
and swelling properties of hydrogels with various compositions were
recorded, and the effect of the preparation variables was evaluated
applying neurofuzzy logic tools for hydrogels prepared with and without
albumin and associating the antibiotic cloxacillin. Developed hydrogel
systems were extensively analyzed by means of nuclear magnetic resonance
(NMR) to determine weak-to-medium and strong binding modes and the
equilibrium constants of the albumin–cloxacillin association.
NMR techniques were also employed to demonstrate the successful modulation
of the cloxacillin release from the albumin-containing hydrogels. <i>In vitro</i> microbiological tests carried out with <i>Staphylococcus aureus</i> and <i>Staphylococcus epidermidis</i> confirmed the interest of the albumin-containing hydrogels as efficient
platforms for cloxacillin release in its bioactive form