Microneedles with Tunable Dissolution Rate

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Biomedical Engineering
• Pharmaceutics

Background:

• Dissolvable microneedle (MN) patches are crucial for transdermal drug delivery, with MN dissolution rate dictating drug release and skin absorption.
• Current methods lack systematic approaches to control the dissolution profiles of dissolvable MN matrices.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP)-based dissolvable MN patches with tunable dissolution profiles.
• To investigate the impact of cellulose materials on the dissolution characteristics of PVP MNs.

Main Methods:

• MN patches were fabricated using a combination of thermal curing and photolithography.
• Various pharmaceutical cellulose grades (hydroxypropyl methylcellulose, methyl cellulose) were incorporated as dissolution modifiers.
• Characterization included dissolution rate, mechanical strength, moisture absorption, and in vitro skin penetration efficiency.

Main Results:

• The developed PVP MN patches exhibited a wide range of dissolution profiles, from 45 minutes to 48 hours.
• Dissolution rates were successfully modulated by varying the grades of incorporated cellulose materials.
• All fabricated MN patches demonstrated efficient skin penetration in vitro.

Conclusions:

• This study presents the first systematic approach to tune dissolvable MN dissolution profiles using PVP and cellulose copolymers.
• The developed MN patches offer potential as versatile drug carriers for transdermal delivery with controllable drug release kinetics.
• PVP-based MN patches show significant promise for advanced skin applications.