Evaluation of Biodegradable PVA-Based 3D Printed Carriers during Dissolution

Abstract

The presence of additive manufacturing, especially 3D printing, has the potential to revolutionize pharmaceutical manufacturing owing to the distinctive capabilities of personalized pharmaceutical manufacturing. This study's aim was to examine the behavior of commonly used polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) under in vitro dissolution conditions. Polylactic acid (PLA) was also used as a comparator. The carriers were designed and fabricated using computer-aided design (CAD). After printing the containers, the behavior of PVA under in vitro simulated biorelevant conditions was monitored by gravimetry and dynamic light scattering (DLS) methods. The results show that in all the dissolution media PVA carriers were dissolved; the particle size was under 300 nm. However, the dissolution rate was different in various dissolution media. In addition to studying the PVA, as drug delivery carriers, the kinetics of drug release were investigated. These dissolution test results accompanied with UV spectrophotometry tracking indirectly determine the possibilities for modifying the output of quality by computer design.

Keywords: 3D printing; computer aided design (CAD); dissolution study; dynamic light scattering (DLS); erosion test; fused deposition modelling (FDM).

Figure 1

Printlet preparation process and digital microscopic images of polyvinyl alcohol (PVA-) and polylactic acid (PLA)-based prototype with one orifice.

Figure 2

CAD models and digital microscopic images of PVA and PLA-based prototype with multiple orifices.

Figure 3

Erosion of PVA-based carrier (A): black line—weight loss; red line—pH = 1.2 HCl; (B): red line—pH = 1.2 HCl; violet line:—pH = 6.8 phosphate buffer (carrier = PVA; n = 3; mean ± SD). (C,D): digital images of PVA wall during dissolution (pH = 1.2; time = 90 min).

Figure 4

Visual tracking of the PVA-based carrier erosion in different media.

Figure 5

Particle size of dissolution sample (carrier = PVA; n = 3; mean ± SD).

Figure 6

Drug release profile of riboflavin loaded PLA and PVA carriers printed containing various number of orifices (zero—cross; one—triangle; two—circle; three—square; four—diamond; n = 3; mean ± SD) with fitted Weibull (dotted lines).