κ-Carrageenan hydrogel nanocomposites with release behavior mediated by morphological distinct Au nanofillers

• Published in: Carbohydrate polymers 2013-01, Vol.91 (1), p.100-109
• Main Authors: Salgueiro, Ana M., Daniel-da-Silva, Ana L., Fateixa, Sara, Trindade, Tito
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Carrageenan; Carrageenan - chemistry; drug carriers; Drug release; drugs; gels; gold; Gold - chemistry; Gold nanoparticles; hydrocolloids; Hydrogels; Hydrogels - chemistry; kappa carrageenan; Kinetics; Mechanical Phenomena; Metal Nanoparticles - chemistry; methylene blue; Methylene Blue - chemistry; microstructure; nanocomposites; Nanocomposites - chemistry; nanogold; Nanorods; polymers; Swelling
• ISSN: 0144-8617; 1879-1344
• DOI: 10.1016/j.carbpol.2012.08.004

► κ-Carrageenan/Au hydrogel nanocomposites for drug delivery applications. ► Au NPs affect hydrogel strength, microstructure and mechanism of drug release. ► Release profile depend on the morphology of the Au NPs used as nanofillers. In this work we investigate the effect of spherical and rod-shaped Au nanoparticles (NPs) in the microstructure, thermomechanical and release properties of thermosensitive κ-carrageenan hydrogels. Thermal and mechanical analyses of the composites revealed that the Au NPs reinforce the structure of the hydrogel and the mechanism of gel reinforcement is discussed. The effect of the NPs on the microstructure and strength of the hydrogel had implications in the mechanism of controlled release as demonstrated by in vitro release studies using a drug model (methylene blue: MB). Noteworthy, the mechanism of MB release followed either a diffusion or polymer relaxation mechanism, depending on the morphology of the Au NPs incorporated in the hydrogel. Consequently, κ-carrageenan hydrogels containing Au NPs exhibited not only optical features modulated by the fillers morphology, but also showed a behavior as drug carriers that can be also adjusted by Au NPs characteristics.