Preparation of (N,N-dimethylaminoethyl)methacrylate containing metronidazole and investigation of the effect of croslinker on swelling ratio and drug delivery

Hydrophilic gels called hydrogels are cross-linked materials absorbing large quantities of water without dissolving. Capacity to store water or aqueous soloutions make hydrogels as an unique matrix of drug delivery system. Crosslinked poly(2-N,N-dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate) were synthesized using ammonium persulfate (APS)/ Tetramethylethylendiamine (TEMED) as an initiator/accelerator system in the presence of tetraethylenglycol diacrylate (TEGDA) as crosslinker in water at 60˚ C. The synthesized samples were confirmed by various techniques and then were investigated as a carrier for gastroretentive delivery of Metronidazole (MTZ), an effective antibiotic administered in peptic ulcer therapy. The parameters such as pH, irradiation time on the swelling behavior of products were studied. The results of swelling studies in artificial gastric and intestine media exhibited higher swelling ratio in lower pH for gastroretentive drug delivery (GDD). The aim of this work was the development of a versatile route for the preparation of pH-responsive hydrogel. Swelling rate of synthetized polymer was studied in simulated gastric fluid (SGF) and simulated intestinal fluid (SIF) mediums. The results show that the developed hydrogle system shows a potential application for pH-senstive oral drug delivery.