Fabrication and characterization of drug-loaded wet spun polycaprolactone fibers

Salicylic acid (SA) loaded polycaprolactone (PCL) fibers were fabricated using the wet-spinning technique. SA was used as a model drug to evaluate the potential application of the loaded fiber system for drug delivery. PCL was homogeneously dissolved in the N,N-dimethylformamide (DMF) solution containing SA and then the co-dissolving solution was solidified to prepare the fibers using the wet-spinning method. The spinning rate of SA-loaded PCL fibers was confined to the range 4 m/min and the diameter of drug-loaded fiber was in the range of 250-450 mu m. Structural morphology and mechanical property and drug release mechanism were studied. The results showed that SA was successfully encapsulated in the wet spun monofilament fibers and this system was stable for high loading capacity and effectiveness in the release. The best values of the tensile strength at 1.55 gf/den of drug-loaded fibers were obtained when the drug loading content was 12 wt %. In vitro drug release experiments indicated that constant drug release from the fiber was observed for a long duration of time. Mathematical analysis of the drug release data suggested that the Korsmeyer-Peppas model was the best-fitted model for predicting the release drug. These findings demonstrate that the controlled release of drugs from PCL fibers could be potentially useful in drug delivery systems.