title: Microstereolithography and characterization of poly(propylene fumarate)-based drug-loaded microneedle arrays.
abstract: Drug-loaded microneedle arrays for transdermal delivery of a chemotherapeutic drug were fabricated using multi-material microstereolithography (μSL). These arrays consisted of twenty-five poly(propylene fumarate) (PPF) microneedles, which were precisely orientated on the same polymeric substrate. To control the viscosity and improve the mechanical properties of the PPF, diethyl fumarate (DEF) was mixed with the polymer. Dacarbazine, which is widely used for skin cancer, was uniformly blended into the PPF/DEF solution prior to crosslinking. Each microneedle has a cylindrical base with a height of 700 μm and a conical tip with a height of 300 μm. Compression test results and characterization of the elastic moduli of the PPF/DEF (50:50) and PPF/drug mixtures indicated that the failure force was much larger than the theoretical skin insertion force. The release kinetics showed that dacarbazine can be released at a controlled rate for five weeks. The results demonstrated that the PPF-based drug-loaded microneedles are a potential method to treat skin carcinomas. In addition, μSL is an attractive manufacturing technique for biomedical applications, especially for micron-scale manufacturing.
authors.affiliation: Department of Mechanical Engineering, The University of Akron, Akron, OH 44325, USA.
authors.forename: Yanfeng
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Lu
authors.forename: Satya Nymisha
authors.initials: SN
authors.lastname: Mantha
authors.forename: Douglas C
authors.initials: DC
authors.lastname: Crowder
authors.forename: Sofia
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Chinchilla
authors.forename: Kush N
authors.initials: KN
authors.lastname: Shah
authors.forename: Yang H
authors.initials: YH
authors.lastname: Yun
authors.forename: Ryan B
authors.initials: RB
authors.lastname: Wicker
authors.forename: Jae-Won
authors.initials: JW
authors.lastname: Choi
mesh_terms: D062028:Bioprinting / Q000295:instrumentation*; D002850:Chromatography, Gel; D019245:Compressive Strength / Q000187:drug effects; D003606:Dacarbazine / Q000494:pharmacology*; D065546:Drug Liberation; D055119:Elastic Modulus / Q000187:drug effects; D004867:Equipment Design; D005453:Fluorescence; D005650:Fumarates / Q000737:chemistry*; D046228:Microarray Analysis / Q000295:instrumentation*; D008970:Molecular Weight; D011126:Polypropylenes / Q000737:chemistry*; D066244:Proton Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy; D014783:Viscosity
chemical_list: D005650:Fumarates; D011126:Polypropylenes; C097850:poly(propylene fumarate); D003606:Dacarbazine