Dual drug release nanocomposites prepared using a combination of electrospraying and electrospinning

Abstract

In this paper we demonstrate for the first time that structural nanocomposites providing dual drug release can be generated using a combination of electrospraying and electrospinning. Ketoprofen (KET) was used as a model drug, and polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) and Eudragit^® L100-55 (EL100) respectively taken as the sheath and core matrices to prepare the nanofibers. Scanning and transmission electron microscope observations demonstrated that the nanofibers had smooth surfaces and cross-sections, and distinct core–sheath nanostructures. They also had relatively uniform diameters of 0.64 ± 0.21 μm. Differential scanning calorimetry and X-ray diffraction results indicated that the nanofibers contained KET homogeneously distributed in both the sheath and core parts of the fibers. IR spectra indicated that this molecular dispersion was likely to be a result of hydrogen bonding between the components. <i>In vitro</i> dissolution tests showed that the core–sheath fibers provided dual drug release profiles with an immediate release of 35.1% in acidic solutions and sustained release of 62.2% in a pH 6.8 phosphate buffer. The strategy developed here significantly expands the applications of electrohydrodynamic atomization processes in producing novel structural nanocomposites for complex and time-programmed drug release profiles.