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[Display omitted] Despite being an effective therapy for menopausal symptoms, the use of oral estrogen is associated with low bioavailability and serious adverse effects of venous thromboembolism. Individualized therapy has been recommended to maximize benefits and curb the adverse effects, but much has not been done in developing formulations that offer flexibility to personalize therapy. In the present study, we employed an innovative 3D printing technology to design and develop bi-layered estradiol film with different infill patterns with an aim of improving bioavailability and facilitating personalized treatment. Hydroxypropyl cellulose (HPC-H) based formulation exhibited suitable rheological properties and was used as a feedstock to fabricate estradiol films with different infill patterns namely honeycomb, rectangular and plain. The back layer was prepared from a hydroxyethyl cellulose-based formulation. The resulting films were subsequently characterized in terms of their physicochemical, mechanical, environmental impact, and release characteristics among others. Films with a plain infill pattern exhibited significantly higher % elongation break and tensile strength. The in vitro drug release study revealed the fastest drug release profile for rectangular infill (96 % within 4 h) and the slowest drug release was observed for the plain infill pattern (∼35 % within 4 h), highlighting the effect of the infill pattern on release kinetics. Films with honeycomb infill patterns were selected for further characterization based on mechanical and in vitro release properties. No interaction between components of the formulation was observed and the absence of crystallinity in the final product was confirmed by Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) and X-Ray Powder Diffraction analyses (XRD). The force of adhesiveness for the film was 0.13 ± 0.03 N. The predicted AUC 0–4 h, C max , and T max were 144.85 ng·h/mL, 65.97 ng/mL, and 0.83 h for a film (honeycomb infill pattern) loaded with 1 mg of estradiol. The printing process of films with honeycomb and rectangular infill patterns was evaluated as "green" using the index of Greenness Assessment of Printed Pharmaceuticals (iGAPP) tool. Our finding demonstrates the development of bi-layered estradiol film using Pressure assisted microsyringe (PAM) 3D printing and the influence of infill patterns on release kinetics and mechanical properties. The fabricated film not only facilitates the move towards personalized medicine but could also improve the bioavailability of the drugs by bypassing the hepatic first-pass metabolism and decreasing wash-out by the saliva. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Following the huge clinical success of drug-eluting vascular stents, there is a significant interest in the development of drug-eluting stents for other applications, such as the treatment of gastrointestinal (GI) cancers. Central to this process is understanding how particular drugs are released from stent coatings, which to a large extent is controlled by drug-polymer interactions. Therefore, in this study we investigated the release of docetaxel (DTX) from a selection of non-degradable polymer films. DTX-polymer films were prepared at various loadings (1, 5 and 10% w/w) using three commercially available polymers including poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PSi), poly (ethylene-co-vinyl acetate) (PEVA) and Chronosil polyurethane (PU). The formulations were characterised using different techniques such as photoacoustic Fourier-transform infrared (PA-FTIR) spectrophotometry, X-ray diffraction (XRD) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The effect of DTX on the mechanical properties of the films, in-vitro release, and degradation tests were also assessed. For all polymers and DTX loadings, the drug was found to disperse homogenously without crystallisation within the polymer matrix. While no specific interactions were observed between DTX and PSi or PEVA, hydrogen-bonding appeared to be present between DTX and PU, which resulted in a concentration-dependent decrease in the Young's moduli of the films due to disruption of inter-polymeric molecular interactions. In addition, the DTX-PU interactions were found to modulate drug release, providing near-linear release over 30 days, which was accompanied by a significant reduction in degradation products. The results indicate that DTX-loaded PU films are excellent candidates for drug-eluting stents for the treatment of oesophageal cancer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Inulin-based hydrogels are useful carriers for the delivery of drugs in the colon-targeted system and in other biomedical applications. In this project, inulin hydrogels were fabricated by crosslinking oxidized inulin with adipic acid dihydrazide (AAD) without the use of a catalyst or initiator. The physicochemical properties of the obtained hydrogels were further characterized using different techniques, such as swelling experiments, in vitro drug release, degradation, and biocompatibility tests. The crosslinking was confirmed with Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA), and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). In vitro releases of 5-fluorouracil (5FU) from the various inulin hydrogels was enhanced in acidic conditions (pH 5) compared with physiological pH (pH 7.4). In addition, blank gels did not show any appreciable cytotoxicity, whereas 5FU-loaded hydrogels demonstrated efficacy against HCT116 colon cancer cells, which further confirms the potential use of these delivery platforms for direct targeting of 5-FU to the colon. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]