Fabrication and characterization of smart karaya gum/sodium alginate semi-IPN microbeads for controlled release of D-penicillamine drug

This article reports the fabrication of pH-sensitive microbeads from sodium alginate (SA) and modified karaya gum (KG). KG was modified by graft copolymerization using 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate (2-HEMA) through in situ free radical polymerization reaction. The graft copolymer was blended with SA to develop microbeads by a simple ionotropic gelation technique. The microbeads were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, differential scanning calorimetry, thermogravimetric analysis, and scanning electron microscopy. The effect of %HEMA and polymer blend ratio on the swelling capacity was investigated. Drug release kinetics of the microbeads was investigated under both pH 7.4 and pH 1.2 at 37°C. The drug release kinetics was analyzed by evaluating the release data using different kinetic models. </jats:p