Krasnoyarsk scientists have developed a new system for controlled drug delivery based on biodegradable microparticles containing antiseptics. These particles can be used in skin surgery to prevent infections when treating skin lesions. The results of the study were published in the Journal of the Siberian Federal University.

Scientists are actively working to create new treatment methods to improve the efficiency and safety of drugs. One of the promising areas is the development of controlled drug delivery systems. Controlled drug delivery has several advantages over traditional forms: it has increased efficiency, reduced toxicity and ease of use. In such systems, micro- and nanoparticles are used as drug carriers, which slowly release under control the drug previously loaded into them.

Specialists from the Krasnoyarsk Science Center of SB RAS, together with colleagues from the Siberian Federal University, obtained and studied an antiseptic encapsulated in microparticles. They assessed the antibacterial activity of microparticles, their characteristics and prospects for use. According to the scientists, microparticles with an antiseptic can be used in skin surgery.

The researchers used two types of biodegradable polymers (polyhydroxyalkanoates) as matrices for antiseptics: bioplastic poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) and copolymer poly(3-hydroxybutyrate-co-3-hydroxyvalerate). They are biodegradable and biocompatible polymers. Then, the antiseptics Miramistin, Furacilin and Brilliant Green were loaded into the polymer matrices. As a result, spherical microparticles with a diameter from 5.6 to 94.8 micrometers were obtained. Placing antiseptics into the shell increased the stability of the microparticles. The microparticles with furatsilin turned out to be the most stable, while the indicators obtained with miramistin were the lowest. Scientists attributed this to the structure of the molecule and its effect on the polymer.

In addition to size and stability, an important criterion for the practical use of the particles is the intensity of drug release from them. The rate of antiseptic release from the microspheres turned out to be high and gradually increased over the course of a month by 2.5% per day. The scientists claim that during the entire study of the particles there was no “explosive release” of the drug, indicating the high quality of the developed delivery system.

The antibacterial activity of the new particles was tested on the most common bacteria in the human body: Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus. The study showed that microparticles with encapsulated antiseptics demonstrated antibacterial effects and they have potential as long-acting drug delivery systems and thus, are of interest for further research.

“An effective and safe antiseptic is of great importance for the prevention and treatment of various skin lesions. Using systems with an antiseptic based on biodegradable PHA polymers allows microparticles to be applied to damaged skin. Microparticles based on biopolymers fill tissue defects and deliver drugs to the injured area. Our goal was to create carriers for the controlled delivery of biologically active substances and to study their characteristics and drug efficacy for potential use as cutaneous therapeutic systems. We have shown that loading antiseptics into microparticles based on PHA polymers leads to adequate encapsulation efficiency values, sustained drug release, and also demonstrates the stability of this system. The system of controlled delivery of antiseptic drugs created in our study effectively suppresses the development of pathogenic microorganisms in vitro,” said one of the co-authors of the study, Anastasia Murueva, Candidate of Biological Sciences, researcher at the Institute of Biophysics SB RAS.