Abstract:
Experiments were done to produce beads of different concentrations of chitosan,
alginate and their blend mixtures. Cyclophosphamide was used to study the drug release in
different medias. This drug was encapsulated into mixed gel beads. The nanocomposite beads
were produced by dropping chitosan-alginate mixture solution in calcium chloride solution
with syringe transferring the calcium crosslinked gel beads into sodium sulphate. The beads
were characterized by XRD, SEM and FTIR to determine crystal formation, surface structure,
functional group presence and absorbance of the drug into the release medias. The SEM
images showed that presence of cracks describes the breakage of polymeric complex when
dried. The surface was not smooth as we decreasing the amount of alginate, so it is also
favorable when such kind of beads are going to be used for biological application i.e. drug
delivery. The FTIR spectrum has proven the presence of different functional groups attached
with the composite. The SEM images describes the presence of drug and magnetic
nanoparticles on the surface of beads, the FTIR also confirms the presence of these contents
on the beads surface. The XRD analysis revealed that the drug is not present in crystalline
phase, but it is present in amorphous phase. The pure drug is present in crystalline phase but
when we mixed it with polymers, its crystallinity disappears. Swelling studies of CS-coated
Alg beads and Alg-CS mixed beads were done in stimulated gastric fluid (SGF), water and
phosphate buffer saline (PBS). The studies showed that the swelling of chitosan-alginate
composite beads is dependent on the presence of polyelectrolyte complex, the pH of the
swelling media and the initial state of the beads. The swelling curves indicates that increase
in CS content, speeds the swelling behavior. The swelling was performed in three different
medias, so the effect of media was considerably effective. In acidic medium, there was
shrinkage in the size of the beads, while in basic and neutral solution, there was certain gain
in weight
