Polymer hydrogel-based microneedles for metformin release

Sharma, Manoj and Kap, Özlem and Abdelmohsen, Hend and Harper, Garry and Firlak, Melike and Aaltonen, Jasmine and Bolland, Kerry and Bragg, Ryan and Deeley, Sarah and Francis, Ella and Kazi, Nahin and Mapley, Bethany and Oikonomou, Vasileios and Aljohani, Amal and Halcovitch, Nathan and Cheneler, David and Kılıç, Volkan and Horzum, Nesrin and Hardy, John (2022) Polymer hydrogel-based microneedles for metformin release. In: Recent Appointees in Materials Science 2022, 2022-09-05 - 2022-09-06, University of Bradford.

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Abstract

Drug delivery devices ensure the effective delivery of a broad range of therapeutics to millions of patients worldwide on a daily basis.1 Microneedles are a class of drug delivery device that provide pain free transdermal delivery with improved patient compliance.2-4 The release of metformin, a drug used in the treatment of cancer and diabetes, from polymer hydrogel-based microneedle patches was demonstrated in vitro. Tuning the composition of the polymer hydrogels enabled preparation of robust microneedle patches with mechanical properties such that they would penetrate skin (insertion force of a single microneedle to be ca. 40 N). Swelling experiments conducted at 20°C, 35°C and 60°C show temperature dependent degrees of swelling and kinetics (Fickian diffusion). Drug release from the hydrogel-based microneedles was fitted to various models (e.g., zero order, first order, second order, Korsmeyer-Peppas, Peppas-Sahlins), observing the best fit for the zero-order model. Such microneedles have potential application for transdermal delivery of metformin for the treatment of cancer and diabetes.