Development of self-adhesive mussel-inspired swellable microneedle for transdermal application

• Main Author: Chia, Wen Feng
• Other Authors: Xu Chenjie
• Format: Final Year Project
• Language: English
• Published: 2018
• Subjects: DRNTU::Engineering::Bioengineering
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10356/75174
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

Inspired by the adhesive protein secreated by the Mussel which contains the dopamine catechoamine that gives it waterproofing adhesion ability. Dopa has been found in the adhesive proteins of mussels which allow it to resist dislodging from incoming wave. The reason for this strong and water-resistant adhesion of the mussels to the solid surfaces in the sea is the cateholic functionality of Dopa which have been functionalized with various polymers to provide adhesive, sealant, coating and anchoring properties in biomedical applications particularly. Additionally, Dopamines have half-life of a few minutes when circulating in the blood where they can be degraded by methylation by catechol-O-methyltransferases (COMT). In this study, dopamine was used to functionalize methacrylated hydroluronic acid (MeHA) to product a biocompatible and biodegradable macromer. We have successfully synthesized a biocompatible and degradable adhesive based on hyaluronic acid derivative (catechol methacrylate modified hyaluronic acid) and demonstrated its adhesive property; able to hold at least 02 N/cm2 while maintaining its structural integrity. The initial objective of this study is to develop a self-adhesive microneedle. However due to the time spend on synthesizing the CA MeHA polymer and the difficulties faced in the fabrication of the microneedle, the optimization and fabrication of the CA-MeHA microneedle will be left for future works. CA-MeHA is biodegradable, biocompatible and non-immunogenic hence it will not invoke any inflammatory response or irritation. With extensive research, the development of CA-MeHA adhesives could potentially open up various applications in the medical and therapeutic field.