Ordered mesoporous materials (OMMs) are interesting matrixes for nanomedicine applications such as innovative drug delivery systems. Here, we compare the behavior of the widely studied SBA-15 mesoporous silica with that of the less investigated MSE (a periodic mesoporous organosilica whose silicon atoms are alternatively connected by means of -Si-O-Si- and -Si-CH(2)-CH(2)-Si- groups) toward the adsorption (pH 7.0 and 9.6) and in vitro release (pH 7.4; T = 37 degrees C) of an antimicrobial protein (hen egg white lysozyme). Both OMMs have a hexagonal ordered mesoporous structure and texture, as confirmed by SAXS, TEM, and N(2) adsorption isotherms, but differ for the chemical composition and surface charge density, as determined by ATR-FTIR spectroscopy and potentiometric titrations, respectively. Rather than the structural and textural features, the different chemical composition of SBA-15 and MSE seems to be responsible for the different lysozyme loading and release and for the different stability toward the lixiviating action of the physiological medium (pH 7.4; T = 37 degrees C)
This study was aimed to characterize the microstructure and the performance of gelatin microspheres (GMs) cross-linked by two different cross-linkers viz. d-glucose and glutaraldehyde. New formulations were obtained, suspending the GMs in a thermoreversible Pluronic F127 (PF127) liquid-crystalline gel. Lysozyme was used as a model biomacromolecular drug to evaluate release features. Both types of cross-linked GMs were prepared by thermal gelation method. The lysozyme-loaded microspheres were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) for size distribution, shape, and surface texture. SEM revealed that both types of lysozyme-loaded GMs were spherical in shape and that the surface of glutaraldehyde cross-linked GMs was smoother than that of the glucose cross-linked GMs. The degree of cross-linking of microspheres was investigated using ATR-FTIR technique. The prepared GMs were suspended in 20% w/v aqueous PF127 gel for which the usual sol-gel transition temperature of 22 °C did not change in the presence of GMs, as indicated by rheological measurements. SAXS study of the PF127 gel confirmed the occurrence of a discrete cubic liquid-crystalline phase of the Fm3m type whose lattice parameter slightly decreased as a result of GMs addition. The in vitro release of lysozyme from both types of cross-linked GMs was successfully controlled when they were suspended in PF127 gel, thus suggesting the potential use of this new combined formulation as a drug-depot system.
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