Preparation and evaluation of two types of films made by electrospray technique

Abstract

Electrospray technique has been massively studied in the recent years owing to its simple experimental setup, broad applications and cost-effective attribute. In this project, electrospray technique has been adopted to generate micro- or nanostructure with controllable size and morphology. The function of each parameter in altering structures’ size and shape has been explored. Three optimized formulations used to produce nearly uniform spheres with average diameters of 300nm, 5µm and 10µm has been achieved accordingly. In addition, electrospray technique has been used to fabricate oral film with metoprolol tartrate salt loaded for the treatment of heart disease. The physicochemical properties of the oral film and the in-vitro drug release profile have been studied. Obtained results have been analyzed and compared with the oral film made by solvent casting. It was found that oral film made by electrospray technique has higher drug encapsulation efficiency up to 99.29%. The cumulative drug release profile for the electrospray oral film was found to be fully released within an hour; where the disintegration time of the electrospray oral film is 2.5 times faster than the oral film made by solvent casting. Apart from this, it is efficient to produce oral films using electrospray technique since the processing time is significantly reduced by several hours and it is less labor intensive. In summary, electrospray technique is highly recommended to fabricate oral films for drug delivery applications.