Therapeutic Effectiveness in the Treatment of Experimental Bacterial Keratitis with Ion-activated Mucoadhesive Hydrogel

Abstract

Purpose: To investigate the therapeutic effectiveness of ion-activated mucoadhesive hydrogel system in the treatment of experimental bacterial keratitis.

Materials and Methods: Mucoadhesive systems were prepared using gellan or sodium alginate alone and combined with sodium carboxymethylcellulose (NaCMC) to enhance the gel bioadhesion properties. The in vivo antimicrobial efficacy of selected mucoadhesive systems was studied in an experiment on bacterial keratitis in rabbit’s eyes and compared with that of the marketed conventional eyedrops.

Results: Ocular tolerance was studied in the eye of albino rabbits and tested formulations were non-irritant with no sign of inflammation. Better improvement in experimental bacterial keratitis in rabbit eyes was observed in animals treated with mucoadhesive hydrogel formulation (GG5 and GS5) compared with marketed drug solution.

Conclusion: The developed system is a viable alternative to conventional eyedrops of GTN due to its ability to enhance bioavailability through its longer precorneal residence time.

Keywords:

• Bacterial keratitis
• gatifloxacin
• in vivo antibacterial
• ion-activated hydrogel
• mucoadhesive
• rabbit eyes

Declaration of interest

The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper.

Funding

We acknowledge financial support from University Grants Commission, New Delhi, India, in terms of a Senior Research Fellowship.