Comparative study of vascular prostheses coated with polycyclodextrins for controlled ciprofloxacin release

A textile polyester vascular graft was modified with cyclodextrins to obtain a new implant capable of releasing antibiotics (here ciprofloxacin, CFX) over prolonged time periods and thereby reducing the risk of post-operative infections. In this study, we compared samples modified with native and modified cyclodextrins, presenting different cavity sizes (β or γ cyclodextrins) and different substituent groups (hydroxypropyl and methyl). Drug release was measured in water, phosphate buffer pH 7.4 and blood plasma. The inclusion of CFX in the cyclodextrins cavities was observed in solution by two-dimensional (1)H NMR spectroscopy and confirmed by (1)F NMR measurements. Grafts modification with all cyclodextrins induced an increase of their sorption capacity towards CFX whose extent depended on the nature of the cyclodextrin: a 4-fold and 10-fold increase was observed in the cases of hydroxypropyl cyclodextrins and methylated β-cyclodextrin, respectively. Depending on the type of release medium and nature of CD, different CFX release kinetics were obtained. The discussion highlighted not only the role of the host guest complexation, but also that of the electrostatic interactions that occur between the anionic crosslinks of the cyclodextrins polymers, and CFX that presents a zwitterionic character. The microbiological assessment confirmed sustained CFX release in human plasma and demonstrated antibacterial efficiency of CD modified prostheses against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli for at least 24 h (compared to 4 h in the case of virgin grafts).