Controlled Drug Delivery from 3D Printed Two-Photon Polymerized Poly(Ethylene Glycol) Dimethacrylate Devices

Publication date: Available online 27 September 2018Source: International Journal of PharmaceuticsAuthor(s): Anh-Vu Do, Kristan Worthington, Budd Tucker, Aliasger K. SalemAbstractControlled drug delivery systems have been utilized to enhance the therapeutic effects of many drugs by delivering drugs in a time-dependent and sustained manner. Here, with the aid of 3D printing technology, drug delivery devices were fabricated and tested using a model drug (fluorophore: rhodamine B). Poly(ethylene glycol) dimethacrylate (PEGDMA) devices were fabricated using a two-photon polymerization (TPP) system and rhodamine B was homogenously entrapped inside the polymer matrix during photopolymerization. These devices were printed with varying porosity and morphology using varying printing parameters such as slicing and hatching distance. The effects of these variables on drug release kinetics were determined by evaluating device fluorescence over the course of one week. These PEGDMA-based structures were then investigated for toxicity and biocompatibility in vitro, where MTS assays were performed using a range of cell types including induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). Overall, tuning the hatching distance, slicing distance, and pore size of the fabricated devices modulated the rhodamine B release profile, in each case presumably due to resulting changes in the motility of the small molecule and its access to structure edges. In general, increased spacing provided higher drug release wh...
Source: International Journal of Pharmaceutics - Category: Drugs & Pharmacology Source Type: research