Development of Electrosprayed Particles from Chitosan and Soy Protein Isolate for Drug Delivery ^†

Pharmaceutical formulations based on polymeric micro/nanoparticles offer multiple advantages for drug delivery applications. They can significantly reduce treatment costs and toxicity risks while enabling patient-specific therapies. Moreover, micro/nanoformulations enhance therapeutic efficacy, prevent the premature degradation of active agents, and improve interaction with the biological environment. Among the various particle fabrication techniques in existence, electrospraying stands out due to its precise control over particle size, morphology, and surface characteristics.

In this study, we selected two biopolymers for nanoparticle production: chitosan (extracted in our laboratory from industrial crustacean waste in Mar del Plata) and soy protein isolate (SPI), which is obtained from the byproducts of soybean oil extraction. To modulate the swelling behavior and degradation profile of the resulting particles, the polymers were cross-linked using oxidized sucrose, following a green chemistry approach aimed at minimizing environmental impact.

Electrospraying conditions were optimized to generate nanoparticles from a chitosan/SPI blend dissolved in 10 mol/L acetic acid. The polymeric solution was infused at a constant rate of 0.2 mL/h, while varying the needle-to-collector distance (10, 13, 15, and 17 cm) and the applied voltage (10–17 kV). SEM analysis has been conducted, and data processing is currently ongoing to identify the optimal parameters. Once optimized, these particles are loaded with ivermectin to evaluate drug loading capacity, encapsulation efficiency, and release kinetics.