Controlled in Vitro Release of Levodopa from Sodium Alginate Membranes

Abstract

Levodopa (LD) plays a central role in Parkinson’s Disease therapeutics. In this study, we aimed to encapsulate LD in sodium alginate (SA) membranes, and to study its dissolution profiles. Two types of SA membranes, loaded with two different amounts of LD were prepared and compared (M1: 85 mg per 50 ml SA/LD; M2: 127.5 mg per 75 ml SA/LD); membranes production followed a solvent-casting methodology. Calcium chloride was used as a crosslinking agent. LD solubility tests were performed to predict sink conditions required for complete drug dissolution. LD dissolution assays were carried out and UV spectrophotometry was used for cumulative release percentage determination. The obtained data were mathematically evaluated and fitted into mathematical dependent models; the difference factor (f1), the similarity factor (f2) and other parameters like dissolution efficiency (DE) were also used. No differences in the dissolution profiles of both membranes were noticed. Thus, increasing the amount of LD, but keeping the same concentration, led to a similar controlled release. The membranes presented in this work are expected to be a promising contribution in the development of a new controlled drug delivery system for LD administration.