Biodegradable and dissolvable resveratrol nanocrystals non-silicon microneedles for transdermal drug delivery

Abstract

The prevalence and lethality of cutaneous melanoma have increased in recent years. Lower skin penetration rates and poor soluble affect the effective delivery of resveratrol. To overcome these two issues, a biodegradable and dissolvable resveratrol nanocrystals non-silicon microneedles was designed in this study. The nanocrystals technology was used to improve the resveratrol solubility. Transmission electron microscopy and scanning electron microscopy demonstrated that the amorphous resveratrol nanocrystals were successfully prepared with a particle size of 161 ± 9 nm and presented a superior performance in vitro dissolution of 84.14 ± 2.53% for 120 min. For the skin permeability issue, a dissolvable microneedle, made with a biocompatible and biodegradable polymer (a mixture of polyvinylpyrrolidone and polyvinyl alcohol), exhibited exceptional mechanical strength even the microneedles matrix was loaded with the drug for 1.26 N/needle. The z-axis scanning also exhibited the uniformity of rhodamine B within the needle. And it presented rapid resveratrol releases after puncture into the mice's skin. The dissolvable microneedles loaded with the resveratrol nanocrystals provided an efficient and convenient transdermal delivery system.