Mathematical Modelling of Acetaminophen Release in HPC/PAAm Hydrogel: Synthesis and Application

Abstract

Hydrogels are commonly used as Drug Delivery Systems (DDS) as patches due to its ability to store drug molecules within their structures. The release can be activated under certain stimuli, such as temperature and pH. In this paper, the mathematical modelling of acetaminophen release in hydroxypropyl cellulose with polyacrylamide (HPC/PAAm) is reported. The HPC/PAAm gel was synthesized in proportions of 25/75 wt% and was characterized by FTIR, DSC, optical microscopy, SEM, and TGA, with and without acetaminophen. The release tests were performed for hypothermic, normal, and febrile human body conditions, at 35, 37, and 39°C, respectively, on two release media: water and phosphate buffer solution. In order to describe the release of acetaminophen in HPC/PAAm gel, a genetic programming algorithm was used to accomplish Multigene Symbolic Regression (MSR). Characterization results showed that the drug was crystallized on the surface of the HPC/PAAm gel. Release test results showed that several simultaneous processes occurred in the acetaminophen diffusion phenomenon. A unique mathematical model was obtained by MSR. This model was able to describe the release of acetaminophen in HPC/PAAm gel with high values of R 2 and adjusted R 2 and to simulate the drug release at times beyond the end of the experiment. High values of R 2 and low values of Coefficient of Variation (CV), Root-Mean-Square Error (RMSE), and Mean Absolute Error (MAE) were obtained from the comparison between the simulated and the experimental data. This allows to conclude that the mathematical model is reliable to represent and simulate the acetaminophen release in HPC/PAAm gel at 35, 37, and 39°C.

Temperature-Sensitive Hydrogels as Carriers for Modulated Delivery of Acetaminophen

“…The acetaminophen release from poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate- co-N -vinyl-2-pyrrolidone) hydrogels at 37 °C showed a different rate and release mechanisms due to weaker interactions of the polymer with water at pH = 7.2 in the simulated intestinal fluid, SIF, compared with the simulated gastric fluid, SGF, at pH = 1.2 [ 40 ]. The mathematical modelling of releasing the acetaminophen from gel based on hydroxypropylcellulose and poly(acrylamide), 25/75 wt %, was analyzed using a genetic programming algorithm [ 41 ]. The obtained results showed that a greater amount of acetaminophen was released at pH = 7.38 than at pH = 7.…”