Chitosan-g-PAA Hydrogels for Colon-Specific Drug Delivery: Preparation, Swelling Behavior and in vitro Degradability

A series of cross-linked hydrogels for colon-specific drug delivery were synthesized by graft copolymerization of Chitosan and acrylic acid using N, N'-methylene-bis-(acrylamide) as a cross-linker. Their swelling behavior in different pH buffer solutions and colonic enzymatic degradability were studied. The obtained results show that these hydrogels have good pH sensitivity which can avoid drug release in stomach, and their swelling kinetics in stimulant intestinal environment follow second-order swelling kinetics equation. The factors influencing the swelling kinetics include the degree of cross-linking and the composition, which may control no release or a little amount release of drug inside the hydrogels in the small intestine by tailoring these factors. The gels are degradable by colonic enzymes and there is a correlativity between the degradation of networks and the swelling degree of the gels, which may trigger the release of drug in the colon. The hydrogels show a great potential for their application in oral colon-specific drug delivery system.