Drug Delivery from Nanogel Formulations: Mathematical Modeling of Different Release Profiles and Conditions

The accurate prediction of drug release kinetics is crucial for designing effective drug delivery formulations. In this context, controlled drug release from hydrogel matrices is a key strategy to enhance therapeutic outcomes while minimizing side effects. In this study, we develop an advanced mathematical model to describe drug release from nanogels, aiming to accurately represent both standard scenarios where the active compound is fully released and cases where diffusion alone is not sufficient to achieve 100% release. The proposed model is based on Fick's diffusion equation but introduces more realistic boundary conditions by eliminating the perfect sink assumption and incorporating a partition coefficient to account for incomplete drug release. The model was applied to six experimental case studies, varying surface charge, pH of the release environment, and nanogel surface functionalization in order to determine the corresponding diffusion coefficient. The results show good agreement with experimental data, providing a consistent interpretation of the release mechanisms observed in the different case studies. This demonstrates the ability of the model to capture the key factors that influence drug release, making it a valuable tool to support the development of new drug delivery systems. By enabling the prediction and optimization of release profiles, the proposed approach can contribute to the design of tailored delivery strategies to achieve improved therapeutic outcomes.