Fabrication of starch-based hydrogels as drug controlled release carriers: Characterization, anti-bacterial, and cytotoxicity assessment

A significant attention has been gained by starch-based hydrogels, particularly in drug delivery systems, due to their biodegradability, biocompatibility, water absorption, and drug release features. Due to these unique properties, the sustained release of pharmaceutical compounds, including proteins and drugs, can be controlled for an extended period by the developed drug-loaded starch-based hydrogels. The current investigation reports penicillin-loaded hydrogels based on starch as drug carrier systems. A free radical polymerization approach was used to synthesize starch-based hydrogels. The novelty of the current investigation lies in the crosslinking of starch with acrylic acid, which not only sustains the release of the drug but also mitigates the adverse effects of penicillin. Due to the pH-sensitive nature of the developed hydrogels, the upper parts of the gastrointestinal tract are not only protected from the adverse effects of the drug, but also the drug itself is shielded from gastric degradation. Hence, various characterizations, including FTIR, DSC, TGA, XRD, and SEM, were conducted to evaluate the structural properties of hydrogel matrices. The swelling and drug release studies indicated pH-responsive properties with the maximum absorption of water and drug release at pH 7.4. Maximum swelling of 4.00 ± 0.33, 5.5 ± 0.31, 6.6 ± 0.28, and drug release of 28 %, 60 %, 97 % were observed at pH 1.2, 4.6, and 7.4, respectively. The toxicity of synthesized hydrogels was examined on mouse fibroblast L929 and RAW macrophages (RAW: 264.7) cells, indicating no toxic effect, as cell viability was found to be more than 80 %. An antibacterial study was performed on Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli bacteria, which showed a high zone of inhibition, 60.81 ± 0.52 and 57.34 ± 1.12 mm, respectively. The increased concentration of hydrogel contents reduced bacterial colonies, indicating excellent antibacterial activity of the prepared hydrogel. The results enable starch-based hydrogels as good candidates for controlled drug delivery.