Characterization of encapsulated quercetin in metal alginate hydrogels for drug delivery system

• Main Author: Fajardo, Tricia Jan Marie C.
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Animo Repository 2022
• Subjects: Quercetin; Drug delivery systems; Alginates; Colloids; Chemistry
• Online Access: https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/etdm_chem/3; https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1002&context=etdm_chem
• Institution: De La Salle University

Quercetin is an important drug that exhibits antioxidant, anti-cancer, anti-inflammatory, and antiviral effects that has been also used in treating cardiovascular diseases. However, its insolubility, low bioavailability, short biological half-life, and instability pose a problem in delivering it to the body. To improve its bioavailability, this work encapsulates quercetin in metal-alginate matrices consisting of Ca2+, Zn2+ and a combination of the two ions for a site-specific and controlled release. Quercetin-loaded hydrogels were formed via a dropwise addition of quercetin-alginate mixture into the metal bath to afford a yellow-colored spherical hydrogel. Successful encapsulation of quercetin was confirmed by FTIR, TGA, DSC, SEM-EDS, and UV-vis with encapsulation efficiency as high as 92.57±0.31% for the bimetal-alginate system. The drug release profile in physiological pH simulating gastric (pH 1.2) and intestinal (pH 8.2) conditions revealed that most of the drug remains in the hydrogel protected from the harsh acidic condition of the stomach and preferential full release at simulated intestinal fluid (SIF) was observed. The bimetal-alginate matrix showed the most controlled release of drug in SIF. The study reveals the potential of the drug delivery system for efficient oral therapy of quercetin, ensuring a controlled and targeted release in simulated intestinal conditions where absorption into the bloodstream occurs