BEH.462/3.962J Molecular Principles of Biomaterials Spring 2003
Lecture 5: Controlled Release Devices
Last time: Using enzyme substrate and cytokine peptides to engineer biological recognition of
synthetic polymers
Today: controlled release devices and applications
principles of controlled release devices based on degradable polymers
Synthesis of controlled release devices
Theory of polymer-based controlled release
Reading: ‘Materials for protein delivery in tissue engineering,’ S.P. Baldwin and W.M. Saltzman,
Adv. Drug Deliv. Rev., 33, 71-86 (1998)
Controlled Release Applications in Biological Engineering and Medicine
Overview
? Controlled release: Cargo molecules (small molecule drug, protein, DNA, etc.) released to physiological
environment at a designed rate
? why develop controlled release systems?
o Recent estimates from FDA: ~10 years and $150 to develop a single new drug product- looking for added
value
o Many drugs have a narrow therapeutic index (difference between toxic level and therapeutic level)
null Requires multiple injections
null Poor patient compliance
null Increased incidence of infection and hemmorhages
o Danger of systemic toxicity with more potent drugs; some drugs simply cannot be used
null IL-2 promotes lymphocyte proliferation, useful as an anti-cancer drug but toxic at systemic level
(induces fever, pulmonary edema, and vascular shock)
o Targeted delivery possible
o Improves availability of drugs with short half lives in vivo
null Some peptides have half-lives of a few minutes or even seconds
o Release systems can double as adjuvants for vaccines
? Show Figure 1 p. 347 Ratner
Where applicable:
Application Examples Active
concentration of
cargo
Provide missing soluble factors
promoting cell differentiation,
growth, survival, or other functions
Replace deficient human growth
hormone in children
1-10 pM; Hormones
5-10 nM
Sustained or modulated delivery of
a therapeutic drug
Release of anti-cancer drugs at
site of tumors to induce cancer
varies
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BEH.462/3.962J Molecular Principles of Biomaterials Spring 2003
cell apoptosis, ocular drugs for
treatment of glaucoma,
contraceptive drugs, antimalarial
drugs
Create gradients of a molecule in
situ
Chemoattraction of immune cells
to antigen depot for vaccinesk
1
1-50 pM
One time procedure (e.g. injection)
with multiple dose delivery
Pulsatile release of antigen for
vaccines
10-100 μg antigen
Gene therapy Correction of cystic fibrosis gene
defect, correction of adenosine
deaminase deficiency (ADA
SCID) in lymphocytes, replace
defective gene in Duchenne
muscular dystrophy, cancer
immunotherapy
2
1-20 μg DNA
Antimalarial drugs (Life Sciences 19, 867 (1976)); contraceptive drugs ; (Am. J. Obstet. Gynec. 135, 419 (1979))
? Delivery Sites
o Oral (delivery via intestinal tract)
o Sublinguinal (under tongue)
o Rectal
o Parenteral: (injection sites other than digestive system)
? Intramuscular
? Peritoneal (gut)
? subcutaneous
o Ocular
o (Table 1 Edlund)
Commercial Device Examples (weave this in list below)
Drug delivery is one of the most clinically-commercialized areas of biomaterials
Still only $30 billion/yr in 1998, modest share of world pharmaceuticals market
? Alza ocusert
o Depot for ocular delivery of pilocarpine for glaucoma
? PLGA
o Luteinizing hormone releasing hormone (LHRH) treatment of prostate cancer (Drug. Deliver. Ind. Pharm.
16, 2352 (1990)
? Capronor
o Polycaprolactone 1-year release of levonorgestrel (contraceptive) (C.G. Pitt in ‘Long Acting Contraceptive
Delivery Systems,’ G.I. Zatuchni ed. (1984) p. 48-63)
o
? Advanced Polymer Systems
o Ocular drug delivery
? Gliadel
o Polyanhydride wafers for release of carmustine (anti-brain tumor drug)
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BEH.462/3.962J Molecular Principles of Biomaterials Spring 2003
Types of controlled release devices
3
1. Drug diffusion-controlled release
a. Entrapped drug diffuses out of matrix at defined rate
(SLIDE)
Solid matrix
Drug diffusion-controlled release
Barrier release
Norplant¨ system
b. Can provide release by diffusion out of polymeric matrix or diffusion through a barrier
c. Major disadvantages
i. Nondegradable implants
ii. Diffusion of large molecules such as proteins through the polymer is too slow to be effective
iii. Danger of ‘dose dumping’ in barrier systems if membrane is ruptured
d. Typically nondegradable polymer
i. Poly(dimethylsiloxane) (Norplant contraceptive- 6 flexible tubes filled with levonorgestrel)
levonorgestrel
e. We will see later that eroding polymer release devices can also have diffusion-controlled release over an
early timeframe, before degradation has proceeded very far
f. Release rates controlled by simple drug diffusion calculations
2. water diffusion-controlled release
a. water influx controls release
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BEH.462/3.962J Molecular Principles of Biomaterials Spring 2003
b. diffusivity in swollen polymer allows diffusion of drug out of matrix
(SLIDE)
c. also nondegradable polymers typically
i. poly(ethylene-co-vinyl acetate)
3. erodible devices
a. combination of polymer breakdown and drug diffusion through matrix releases cargo
(SLIDE)
eroding matrix
Non-erodible capsule
b. first example: Yolles Polym. News 1,9 (1971) or polym. Sci. Tecnol. 8, 245 (1975); cyclazocine in PLA
sheets
c. Advantage of being injectable (microspheres) and resorbable (no retrieval surgery)
d. Disadvantage that therapy difficult to stop once injected due to difficult recovery of particles
e. clinical product examples
1. Lupron depot
a. One month injectable PLGA microspheres containing leuprolide acetate for
treatment of endometriosis and prostatic cancer
4
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BEH.462/3.962J Molecular Principles of Biomaterials Spring 2003
4. regulated release
a. devices with externally-applied trigger to turn release on/off
i. electrical
5
ii. mechanical
(SLIDE)
transdermal - Alza Macroflux? patch
Osmotic pump - Alza
Duros¨ implant
Semipermeable membrane
QuickTime? and a Graphics decompressor are needed to see this picture.
Osmotic engine
piston
Drug reservoir
Delivery orifice
Titanium rod casing
Titanium microprojections
Adhesive backing
Drug matrix
Osmotic engine: (one form)
Osmotic pump - Alza
Duros¨ implant
needed to see this picture.
Semipermeable membrane
Osmotic engine
piston
Drug reservoir
Delivery orifice
b. benefit of complex control
Favorable ?Smix
Titanium rod casing
Water driven into
; swelling
drives piston to push
?engine?
drug out other end
c. generally more bulky devices and require implantation
? Device types 1-4 generally ‘pre-programmed’
? *DISCUSSION OF #5 NEXT DAY IN COMPLEX RELEASE PROFILES
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BEH.462/3.962J Molecular Principles of Biomaterials Spring 2003
Sustained release
? Primary objective of controlled release devices: SUSTAINED RELEASE
? General rate expression:
dc
= kc
n
n = 0 ->
dc
= k
dt dt
? Want to match release rate to in vivo uptake/degradation rate to obtain a constant effective concentration of
drug ON BOARD:
c(t)
c
eff
(t)
Minimal effective dose
Toxic dose
t t
Design of Eroding Polymer Controlled Release Devices
Continuous Release:
Mechanism III hydrolysis
Surface-eroding matrix bulk-eroding matrix
Protein or
Small-molecule
drug
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BEH.462/3.962J Molecular Principles of Biomaterials Spring 2003
Typical Release Profiles:
Surface eroding bulk eroding
(Garcia et al.
6
)
? Corresponding RATES: ON BOARD:
Surface eroding: bulk eroding:
Release Release
rate rate
dc(t) dc(t)
c
eff
(t)
dt dt
Toxic dose
t t t
? PARADOX: zero-order release best obtained from surface-erodiing devices, but polymers with surface
erosion mode typically also degrade very quickly- often too fast for the timescales of most interest
Factors Controlling Release:
1. Erosion mechanism
i. PH/hydrophobic contacts can cause protein degradation, aggregation, and denaturation
2. Device Microstructure
i. Burst effect often seen- controversy as to whether this is near-surface entrapped drug or surface-
adsorbed drug
7
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BEH.462/3.962J Molecular Principles of Biomaterials Spring 2003
3. Bonding between encapsulant and matrix
i. Proteins can adsorb to inner surfaces of degrading matrix
ii. Ionic interactions of drug with matrix
Mechanism II hydrolysis:
Heller in Contr. Rel. of Bioactive Materaisls R.W. Baker ed. 1980 p. 1-17
Poly(methyl vinyl ether-co-maleic anhydride) zero-order release
Fig. 2 Merkli et al. – release profile
Also Heller et al. JAPS 22, 1991 (!978) – mechanism of erosion
Fabrication of Eroding Depot Devices
Single emulsion microparticle fabrication:
Useful for hydrophobic, small molecule drugs
(Edlund and Albertsson
8
)
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BEH.462/3.962J Molecular Principles of Biomaterials Spring 2003
peptide
encapsulation
Aq. Stabilizer solution
? sphere sizes ~ 0.5 – 100 μm
? Stabilizers used in microsphere fabrication:
o Poly(vinyl alcohol)
o Tweens
o Poly(vinyl pyrrolidone)
o Poly(ethylene glycol-b-propylene glycol) (e.g. Pluronics
TM
)
? Inhibit particle coalescence by steric interference between droplets
? Factors in encapsulation efficiency: (tied to many of same molecular issues as release)
o Bonding between drug and matrix
o Hydrophilic proteins are poorly encapsulated
Double emulsion microparticle fabrication:
? Allows entrapment of hydrophilic molecules, proteins
Stabilizer solution (aq)
Protein
encapsulation
Solid polymer
Adsorbed stabilizer
Inner aq. phase
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BEH.462/3.962J Molecular Principles of Biomaterials Spring 2003
? synthesis:
1. aq. solution of protein added to organic solution of polymer; emulsify
2. add milky W/O emulsion to large aq. phase containing stabilizer, emulsify to form second emulsion
3. stir and evaporate organic phase to form solid polymer microspheres entrapping aq. droplets of protein
solution
? issues with delivery of protein drugs
o LOADING EFFICIENCIES TYPICALLY POOR FOR PROTEIN DRUGS
null Difficult to achieve more than a few % by weight protein
null Escape to aqueous phase during processing
o Many fragile proteins denatured or irreversibly bound due to low pH, adsorption to hydrophobic polymer
segments
? We will return to the topic of controlled release device synthesis when we discuss nanoparticle-based
biomaterials
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BEH.462/3.962J Molecular Principles of Biomaterials Spring 2003
Theory of Controlled Release from Degradable Solids
9
? Release from eroding solid polymer
o simplest important case, still a difficult problem!
o Assume encapsulant is physically immobilized (but not covalently linked to matrix) within a water-
insoluble polymer matrix
Analytical theory of controlled release from bulk-eroding solid
10,11
? List of parameters:
A device surface area
Cs concentration of drug soluble in matrix
C
0
initial concentration of drug encapsulated in device
M(t) molecular weight of matrix at time t
M
0
initial molecular weight of matrix
D Diffusion coefficient of drug in polymer matrix
h thickness of diffusion region in releasing sample
Q(t) total mass of drug released from dispersed phase from time 0 to time t
? Schematic illustration of model:
Q
0 h
x
Cs
C
0
Diffusion region
? Primary simplifying assumptions
o Drug is encapsulated in matrix above its solubility limit: (forms a separate phase)
? When matrix first contacts release medium, surface layer dissolves and concentration drops to
Cs- the level of drug soluble in the polymer matrix
? Extraction of drug from the dispersed phase does not occur at a given depth in the matrix until the
extraction front contacts that position, creating ‘space’ for the drug to dissolve
? The rate of this process of dissolution into the polymer matrix is assumed to be >> the
processs of diffusion through the matrix
? Creates discontinuity in concentration profile once diffusion begins: once free, drug concentration
immediately drops to Cs
o D (drug diffusion coefficient in polymer matrix) is correlated with polymer molecular weight
o Hydrolysis of bonds in the matrix occurs simultaneously throughout sample with first-order kinetics
o Surrounding environment acts a sink for released drug
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BEH.462/3.962J Molecular Principles of Biomaterials Spring 2003
o Pseudo steady-state diffusion of drug toward surface occurs in region between diffusion front and the
surface
Derivation of drug release profile:
12
? Amount of drug freed as diffusion front moves into sample by an amount dh:
Eqn 1 dQ = C
0
Adh
? Chain cleavage occurs homogeneously through bulk as a first-order reaction:
dM
Eqn 2
dt
=?kM M(t) = M
0
e
-kt
o This assumption is consistent with experimental measurements on PLGA microspheres
13
:
o An exponential/first-order mode of breakdown indicates that for microspheres, autocatalysis is not a
significant factor- since autocatalysis would change the order of reaction
? Now assume D ~ M
-1
D M
0
Eqn 3
D
0
=
M
D(t) = D
0
e
kt
? within the diffusion region, Fick’s first law describing steady-state diffusion is applied:
Eqn 4 J = D(t)
dc
dx
Eqn 5 J = flux =
?
massdrug
?
1 dQ
= D(t)
(C
s
? 0)
= D(t)C
s
?
?
area ? time?
?
=
A dt (h ? 0)
Eqn 6 ∴ dQ =
AD(t)C
s
dt
h
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BEH.462/3.962J Molecular Principles of Biomaterials Spring 2003
? Using Eqn 1 with Eqn 6:
AD(t)C
s
dt
= C
0
Adh
h
D
C
s
dt = hdh
C
0
? integrating:
t h(t )
∫
D
0
C
s
e
kt
dt =
∫
h' dh'
0
C
0 0
D
0
C
s
e
kt
?1
=
h
2
C
0
k 2
h(t) =
2D
0
C
s
(e
kt
?1)
kC
0
J =
1 dQ
=
DC
s
=
?
D
0
e
2kt
C
s
C
0
k
?
1/2
A dt h
?
?
2(e
kt
?1)
?
?
? integrating, we get total drug released over time:
Q(t) = A
?
?
?
2C
0
C
s
D
k
0
(e
kt
?1)
?
?
?
1/2
= A
?
?
?
?
e
kt
k
?1
?
?
?
1/2
where A
?
= S 2C
0
C
s
D
0
At early times, t small: e
kt
~ 1 + kt:
Q ? A t
?
…this is the Higuchi equation, which describes release by pure diffusion of a drug out of an encapsulating matrix (no
erosion occurring)
? The analytical expression allows experimental determination of A-tilde from early release curves when Higuchi
conditions are still prevailing:
Q
0
t
1/2
òHiguchi regimeó
òErosion regime ó
Higuchi Equation
Diffusion/Erosion model
(from file ‘Charlier contr rel.xls’)
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BEH.462/3.962J Molecular Principles of Biomaterials Spring 2003
? Comparison with experimental data:
o Release from 50/50 PLGA copolymers with difference molecules weights cast as 80 μm-thick films
encapsulating model drug mifepristone (antiprogestative norsteroid) (relatively hydrophobic small
molecule)
References
1. Kumamoto, T. et al. Induction of tumor-specific protective immunity by in situ Langerhans cell vaccine. Nat
Biotechnol 20, 64-9 (2002).
2. Dash, P. R. & Seymour, L. W. in Biomedical Polymers and Polymer Therapeutics (eds. Chiellini, E., Sunamoto, J.,
Migliaresi, C., Ottenbrite, R. M. & Cohn, D.) 341-370 (Kluwer, New York, 2001).
3. Baldwin, S. P. & Saltzman, W. M. Materials for protein delivery in tissue engineering. Adv Drug Deliv Rev 33, 71-
86 (1998).
4. Okada, H. et al. Drug delivery using biodegradable microspheres. J. Contr. Rel. 121, 121-129 (1994).
5. Santini Jr, J. T., Richards, A. C., Scheidt, R., Cima, M. J. & Langer, R. Microchips as Controlled Drug-Delivery
Devices. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl 39, 2396-2407 (2000).
6. Garcia, J. T., Dorta, M. J., Munguia, O., Llabres, M. & Farina, J. B. Biodegradable laminar implants for sustained
release of recombinant human growth hormone. Biomaterials 23, 4759-4764 (2002).
7. Jiang, G., Woo, B. H., Kang, F., Singh, J. & DeLuca, P. P. Assessment of protein release kinetics, stability and
protein polymer interaction of lysozyme encapsulated poly(D,L-lactide-co-glycolide) microspheres. J Control
Release 79, 137-45 (2002).
8. Edlund, U. & Albertsson, A.-C. Degradable polymer microspheres for controlled drug delivery. Advances in
Polymer Science 157, 67-112 (2002).
9. Siepmann, J. & Gopferich, A. Mathematical modeling of bioerodible, polymeric drug delivery systems. Adv Drug
Deliv Rev 48, 229-47 (2001).
10. Charlier, A., Leclerc, B. & Couarraze, G. Release of mifepristone from biodegradable matrices: experimental and
theoretical evaluations. Int J Pharm 200, 115-20 (2000).
11. Fan, L. T. & Singh, S. K. Controlled Release: A Quantitative Treatment (eds. Cantow, H.-J. et al.) (Springer-
Verlag, New York, 1989).
12. Chien, Y. W. Thermodynamics of Controlled Drug Release from Polymeric Delivery Devices. Acs Symposium
Series, 53-71 (1976).
13. Faisant, N., Siepmann, J. & Benoit, J. P. PLGA-based microparticles: elucidation of mechanisms and a new,
simple mathematical model quantifying drug release. Eur J Pharm Sci 15, 355-66 (2002).
Lecture 5 – Controlled Release Devices 14 of 14