Using Electrospray Technique to Fabricate Coatings that can Achieve Controlled Release
Author:
Jonathan Lei ’25Co-Authors:
Faculty Mentor(s):
Ryan Snyder, Chemical Engineering DepartmentFunding Source:
Kalman GrantAbstract
The objective of our study is to use biodegradable materials to design coatings, via the electrospray technique, that can achieve controlled release. Controlled drug release is a beneficial and powerful tool to achieve reduced frequency of dosing, reduced side effects, and better control of drug concentrations in human bodies(Nokhdchi, 2012). These benefits result in an improvement in both the drug’s treatment effect and patients’ compliance with the treatment(Maderuelo et al. 2011). Additionally, using the electrospray technique, it is possible to fabricate polymer coatings on medical devices, such as stents, to be able to modulate their integration with surrounding tissues(Guo, 2015). There are many ways to manipulate a coating’s properties to achieve controlled release. In our study, we are interested in how the thickness of the coating will affect the release profile of the drug. Rhodamine B(a pink dye) is used to simulate the drug, and PVAc(a biodegradable polymer) is used as the polymer substrate of the coating. Coatings were made with different thicknesses, and the Scanning Electron Microscope(SEM) is used to measure the thickness of the coating. The desired coating, resulting from a successful electrospray experiment, has a shiny, smooth surface with a dark pink color. The SEM is used to examine the coating’s surface. After the coatings are made, a diffusion study is conducted by putting the coatings into the PBS solution. The dye releases over time into the solution, and absorbance values are measured regularly using UV Spectrometry and are converted to cumulative percent release. In the end, a percent release versus time graph is plotted for each thickness.