Facile Preparation of Carboxymethyl Cellulose/Cu Bio-Nanocomposite Hydrogels for Controlled Release of Ibuprofen

Abstract

To develop a new drug delivery approach, carboxymethyl cellulose/Cu bio-nanocomposite hydrogels were successfully prepared in situ during the formation of Cu nanoparticles within swollen carboxymethyl cellulose hydrogels. The resulting hydrogels were examined by running various experimental procedures such as FT-IR, XRD, and SEM. XRD analysis confirmed the formation of Cu nanoparticles in the hydrogel matrix, while SEM micrographs showed that nanoparticles ranged from 36 to 69 nm within the same matrix. It was shown that increased Cu2+ concentration led to increased number of Cu nanoparticles. The swelling behavior of the bio-nanocomposite hydrogels was studied at pH 2.1 and 7.4, and exhibited a pH-sensitive swelling ratio, compared with the neat carboxymethyl cellulose hydrogel. The antibacterial activity of the bio-nanocomposite hydrogels was examined and mechanisms involved in their synthesis were reported; the results showed an excellent antibacterial behavior of the bio-nanocomposite hydrogel. In vitro drug release tests were carried out to assess the effectiveness of this novel type of bio-nanocomposite as a controlled drug delivery system. Sustained and controlled drug releases were observed for Cu nanoparticles containing carboxymethyl cellulose, which increased with increases in Cu nanoparticle content. The objective of this study was to prepare and characterize a group of carboxymethyl cellulose hydrogels containing copper nanoparticles. Novel carboxymethyl cellulose/Cu nanocomposite hydrogels were successfully prepared by in situ formation of Cu nanoparticles in the carboxymethyl cellulose hydrogel matrix. The effect of the concentration of the Cu nanoparticles on the swelling and drug release behavior and antibacterial activity for the Gram-negative Escherichia coli and Gram-positive Staphylococcus aureus bacteria was investigated.