Characterization and Biodegradation Studies for Interpenetrating Polymeric Network (IPN) of Chitosan-Amino Acid Beads

The paper describes the synthesis of pH sensitive interpenetrating polymeric network (IPN) beads composed of chitosan, glycine, glutamic acid, cross linked with glutaraldehyde and their use for controlled drug release. The drug was loaded into beads by varying their composition such as, amount of crosslinker glutaraldehyde, ratio of chitosan, glycine and glutamic acid. The beads were characterized by fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy to confirm the cross linking reaction and drug interaction with crosslinked polymer in beads, Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) to understand the surface morphology and Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) to find out the thermal stability of beads. X-Ray Diffraction (XRD) investigation was carried out to determine the crystalline nature of drug after loading into chitosan-glycine-glutamic acid IPN beads. Results indicated amorphous dispersion of chlorpheniramine maleate (CPM) in the polymeric matrix. The swelling behavior of the beads at different time intervals was monitored in solutions of pH 2.0 and pH 7.4. The release experiments were performed in solutions of pH 2.0 and pH 7.4 at 37 ̊C using chlorpheniramine maleate (CPM) as a model drug. The swelling behavior and release of drug were observed to be dependent on pH, degree of cross linking and their composition. The results indicate that the cross linked IPN beads of chitosan-glycine-glutamic acid might be useful as a vehicle for controlled release of drug. The kinetics of drug release from beads was best fitted by Higuchi’s model in which release rate is largely governed by rate of diffusion through the matrix.