PH-Responsive Chitosan/Alginate Polyelectrolyte Complexes on Electrospun PLGA Nanofibers for Controlled Drug Release.

Jean Schoeller,Fabian Itel,Karin Wuertz-Kozak,Giuseppino Fortunato,Dirk Hegemann,Nicolas Luisier,Sandra Gaiser,Stephen J Ferguson,René M Rossi

doi:10.3390/nano11071850

Abstract

The surface functionalization of electrospun nanofibers allows for the introduction of additional functionalities while at the same time retaining the membrane properties of high porosity and surface-to-volume ratio. In this work, we sequentially deposited layers of chitosan and alginate to form a polyelectrolyte complex via layer-by-layer assembly on PLGA nanofibers to introduce pH-responsiveness for the controlled release of ibuprofen. The deposition of the polysaccharides on the surface of the fibers was revealed using spectroscopy techniques and ζ-potential measurements. The presence of polycationic chitosan resulted in a positive surface charge (16.2 ± 4.2 mV, pH 3.0) directly regulating the interactions between a model drug (ibuprofen) loaded within the polyelectrolyte complex and the layer-by-layer coating. The release of ibuprofen was slowed down in acidic pH (1.0) compared to neutral pH as a result of the interactions between the drug and the coating. The provided mesh acts as a promising candidate for the design of drug delivery systems required to bypass the acidic environment of the digestive tract.

Highlights

Electrospinning is a powerful technique to produce non-woven fibrous meshes from polymer solutions or polymer melts
layer assembly (LbL) exploits the charges of the polymeric backbone of polymers to favor interactions with an oppositely charged polymer in order to deposit a thin layer over the surface
We show the applicability of LbL coatings on the surface of electrospun nanofibers for the design of pH-sensitive drug delivery systems

Summary

Introduction

Electrospinning is a powerful technique to produce non-woven fibrous meshes from polymer solutions or polymer melts. The design of responsive electrospun nanofibers has drawn significant attention in the past decade due to their ability to undergo physical or chemical changes when subjected to different stimuli. Such stimuli include pH, temperature, light, and electrical and magnetic fields [1,2,3,4]. For the development of responsive drug delivery systems, nanofibers have shown great potential compared to other planar substrates.

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