Thursday, 26 October 2006
OLCC-McClain (Oakley-Lindsay Center)
128

Molecularly imprinted conducting electropolymers as a drug release system

Anne E. Blackwell and Shelley D. Minteer. Saint Louis University, St Louis, MO

Controlled drug delivery technology is a new and challenging area of research in modern medication and pharmaceuticals. Such delivery systems offer numerous advantages compared to traditional dosage methods such as improved efficiency, reduced toxicity, and improved patient compliance and convenience. The ideal drug delivery system must fulfill several requirements. Namely, it must be inert, biocompatible, mechanically sturdy, free of leachable impurities, and efficient in drug targeting specificity. Polymer-based systems fulfill these needs. Previous research has demonstrated the suitability of molecularly imprinted poly(methylene green) as a drug delivery system. In these experiments, poly(methylene blue), poly(methyl orange), and poly(neutral red), all conducting polymers, were each molecularly imprinted with theophylline for employment as a drug release system. A thin film of polymer was electropolymerized on the surface of an electrode by performing cyclic voltammetry for 50 segments in a monomer-theophylline solution. By applying low constant potential, the theophylline molecules are forcibly ejected from the polymer. Cyclic voltammograms taken every 60 seconds on an adjacent, bare electrode show an increased current, indicating the presence of theophylline in solution near the electrode. Changing the magnitude of the applied voltage may result in differing release speeds, providing either slow or fast release options of the drug into the target system.

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