Dexamethasone Release from Glutaraldehyde Cross-Linked Chitosan Microspheres: In Vitro/In Vivo Studies and Non-Clinical Parameters Response in Rat Arthritic Model

Abstract

The Dexamethasone (DEX) loaded chitosan microspheres were prepared by thermal denaturation and chemical cross-linking method using a dierent concentration of glutaraldehyde as chemical cross-linking agent. The prepared microspheres were evaluated for the percentage of Drug Loading (DL), Encapsulation Efficiency (EE) and surface morphology by Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM). DL and EE were found to be maximum range of 10.0 to 10.79 % and 58.19 to 64.73 % respectively. The SEM Photographs of the resultant microspheres exhibited fairly smooth surfaces and predominantly spherical in appearance. In addition, Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) and Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) shown that there was no interaction between the drug and polymer. In vitro and in vivo release studies revealed that the release of dexamethasone was sustained and extended up to 63 days and effectively controlled by the extent of cross-linking agent. Non-clinical parameters such as paw volume, hematological parameters like Erythrocyte Sedimentation Rate (ESR), Paced Cell Volume (PCV), Total Leucocytes Count (TLC), Hemoglobin (Hb), Differential Cell Count (DCC) were investigated in Fruend's Complete Adjuvant (FCA) induced arthritic rats. Radiology and histopathological studies were also performed in order to evaluate the therapeutic efficacy of the DEX-loaded microspheres in extenuating the rat arthritic model.