Mechanical, Mucoadhesive and Biocompatibility Behavior of Hydrogel Films: A Slow Anticancer Drug Delivery System

Abstract

Systemic administration of anticancer drugs is associated with a number of side effects. Therefore, it needs some targeted drug delivery system to deliver the drug which would ensure relief from side effects along with the direct delivery of drug to the site of action in a controlled manner. Keeping in view the importance of mucoadhesive polymers in site specific drug delivery, in the present work, an attempt has been made to prepare, polysaccharide gum, PVA and AAm based mucoadhesive polymeric films for use as slow, site specific drug delivery system for oral cancer drug 5-flurouracil. Characterizations of polymers have been carried out by SEMs, EDAX, FTIR, TGA/DTA/DTG, XRD and swelling studies. The in vitro release dynamics of drug and some important biomedical properties of hydrogel films (like blood compatibility, mucoadhesion, tensile strength, relaxation, resilience and bursting strength) have also been studied. The values of maximum detachment force (Fmax) and work of adhesion (Wad) of) polymeric films have been observed (1.026±0.175 N) and (0.073±0.010 N mm) respectively. The release of drug in simulated saliva fluid occurred through Fickian diffusion mechanism and polymer films have been observed to be biocompatible nature.