Related Experiment Video
Updated: Mar 27, 2026
Preparation and Characterization of Individual and Multi-drug Loaded Physically Entrapped Polymeric Micelles
Published on: August 28, 2015
Multicomponent Interactive Release (MIR) Model for Herbal Extract/Multidrug-Loaded Electrospun Nanofibers: A
1The Petroleum and Petrochemical College, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand. pitt.s@chula.ac.th.
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Controlled release of multiple herbal bioactives from electrospun polymeric fibers involves complex coupling of diffusion, polymer relaxation, swelling, and erosion within porous mat architectures. This work establishes the Multicomponent Interactive Release (MIR) model, a comprehensive framework integrating component-specific transport mechanisms with molecular interactions and mat-scale structural effects. I revisited first-principles constitutive equations for three physicochemical regimes: rigid matrices (diffusion-controlled), swollen matrices (anomalous transport), and eroding matrices (degradation-controlled). The model addresses multi-scale release from intra-fiber radial diffusion to inter-fiber transport through tortuous pore networks governed by mat porosity (ε), tortuosity (τ), fiber diameter, and packing density. Critical analysis reveals that established empirical models (Higuchi, Korsmeyer-Peppas, Peppas-Sahlin, Hopfenberg) emerge as limiting cases, with the release exponent n arising from the Deborah number. Validation against dexamethasone/PLGA and dual contraceptive drug systems demonstrates superior predictive capability (R2 = 0.9847-0.9992) compared to seven conventional models. Additional model selection criteria including adjusted R2 (0.9762-0.9988), root mean square error (RMSE = 0.89-2.47%), and Akaike Information Criterion (AIC) confirmed MIR superiority while accounting for model complexity. Mechanistic weighting functions deconvolute transport contributions, revealing that fiber diameter governs diffusion-erosion balance while polymer composition dictates degradation kinetics. A practical workflow for implementing the MIR model and sensitivity analysis of key parameters are provided to guide rational formulation design. This framework enables rational design of electrospun systems for complex herbal formulations and combination therapies, directly linking electrospinning process parameters to controlled release performance.
