The processes behind drug loading and release in porous drug delivery systems.

Porous materials are ubiquitous and exhibit properties suitable for depositing therapeutic compounds. Drug loading in porous materials can protect the drug, control its release rate, and improve its solubility. However, to achieve such outcomes from porous delivery systems, effective incorporation of the drug in the internal porosity of the carrier must be guaranteed.

Loading of Porous Functionalized Calcium Carbonate Microparticles: Distribution Analysis with Focused Ion Beam Electron Microscopy and Mercury Porosimetry.

Accurate analysis of intraparticle distribution of substances within porous drug carriers is important to optimize loading and subsequent processing. Mercury intrusion porosimetry, a common technique used for characterization of porous materials, assumes cylindrical pore geometry, which may lead to misinterpretation. Therefore, imaging techniques such as focused ion beam scanning electron microscopy (FIB-SEM) help to better interpret these results.

Mucoadhesive microparticles for local treatment of gastrointestinal diseases.

Mucoadhesive microparticles formulated in a capsule and delivered to the gastrointestinal tract might be useful for local drug delivery. However, swelling and agglomeration of hydrophilic polymers in the gastrointestinal milieu can have a negative influence on particle retention of mucoadhesive microparticles. In this work, we investigated the impact of dry-coating with nano-sized hydrophilic fumed silica on dispersibility and particle retention of mucoadhesive microparticles.