In vitro biocompatibility and release of curcumin from curcumin microcomplex-loaded chitosan scaffold

Abstract

Context: Scaffold if suitably modified could be used as a drug delivery system. Objective: To develop chitosan scaffold as a delivery system for delivering curcumin in wound-healing application. Materials and methods: Chitosan–curcumin microcomplex particles were prepared, and the effect of drug–polymer ratio (DPR) and homogenisation speed (HS) was studied using a two-level full-factorial design. Chitosan scaffold was prepared and incorporated with curcumin microcomplexes to obtain a chitosan scaffold-containing chitosan–curcumin microcomplex (CS-CCM). Antimicrobial property of the CS-CCM against Escherichia coli was studied. The cytotoxicity of CS-CCM was studied by assessing the cell viability by MTT assay. Results and discussion: DPR had a significant effect (p ≤ 0.05) on the drug content. CS-CCM was able to inhibit the growth of E. coli considerably. The MTT results showed that CS-CCM is non-cytotoxic and supports cell proliferation. Conclusion: CS-CCM due to its biocompatibility and antimicrobial property could be further evaluated for potential application in wound healing.

• Antimicrobial
• biocompatibility
• chitosan
• factorial design
• scaffold
• wound healing

Declaration of interest

This work was supported under the Manipal University research fellowship scheme sponsored by Manipal University, Manipal.

The authors confirm that there are no known conflicts of interest associated with this publication.