Preparation and Characterization of Mucoadhesive Buccal Nanoparticles Using Chitosan and Dextran Sulfate.

The aim of this study was to formulate buccal mucoadhesive nanoparticles (NPs) using the natural mucoadhesive polymers. The natural mucoadhesive polymers chitosan (CS) and dextran sulfate sodium salt (DS) were used to prepare mucoadhesive NPs using the ionic gelation method. As the molecular weight of DS decreased, the amount of mucin and the number of buccal cells adsorbed on DS increased. The CS/DS NPs ranged from 100 to 200 nm in diameter. The adhesive interactions of CS/DS NPs with mucin were not significantly different from those of CS/sodium triphosphate pentabasic (TPP) NPs; however, CS/DS NPs exhibited 5 times greater mucoadhesive activity to buccal cells compared to control CS/TPP NPs in ex vivo adhesion tests. These results indicate that the buccal mucoadhesive properties of NPs can be improved using natural mucoadhesive polymers.