Pitarresi Giovanna, Tripodo Giuseppe, Calabrese Rossella, Craparo Emanuela Fabiola, Licciardi Mariano, Giammona Gaetano
Dipartimento di Chimica e Tecnologie Farmaceutiche, Università degli Studi di Palermo, Via Archirafi 32, 90123 Palermo, Italy.
Macromol Biosci. 2008 Oct 8;8(10):891-902. doi: 10.1002/mabi.200800043.
Inulin was chosen as a starting polymer for biocompatible, pH-sensitive and biodegradable hydrogels. Three INUDVSA-TT hydrogels were obtained by crosslinking inulin derivatives with trimethylolpropane tris(3-mercaptopropionate) under varying conditions. The resulting hydrogels were cell compatible, as demonstrated by MTS and trypan blue exclusion assays acting on Caco-2 cells, and were biodegraded by inulinase and esterase, thus suggesting their use as colonic drug delivery systems. 2-Methoxyestradiol, an anti-cancer drug, was soaked in INUDVSA-TT hydrogels and its in vitro release and apoptotic effect on Caco-2 cells were evaluated.
