Silk Fibroin Hydrogel-Assisted Controlled Release of Antifungal Drug Ketoconazole

This research focused on preparing a ketoconazole-infused silk fibroin hydrogel to enhance patient compliance, leveraging the hydrogel's biocompatibility and biodegradability. The process used 50% (v/v) ethanol, propanol, or glycerol solution treated with 2% (w/v) at 37°C. use of quickened gelation process. structure was analyzed via SEM, UV-VIS spectrometry evaluate encapsulation efficiency ketoconazole release profile. surface varied based formulation best observed ethanol (60±1.78%), followed by propanol (56±2.72%) (47±1.42%). profile demonstrated an initial burst 20 hours sustained release. Furthermore, hydrogel-encapsulated drug effective antifungal activity against Aspergillus Niger. As result, hydrogels are promising option for controlled topical delivery ketoconazole.
 Keywords: Silk fibroin, Controlled release, Hydrogels, Drug delivery.