The effect of thiol functional groups on bovine serum albumin/chitosan buccal mucoadhesive patches

In this research, the effect of thiol functional groups on bovine serum albumin (BSA)/chitosan (Chi) based buccal mucoadhesive patch was investigated. Thiolated BSA (BSA-SH) was prepared via 2-mercaptoethanol. FTIR and H-1 NMR results confirmed that BSA-SH was synthesized successfully. The buccal mucoadhesive patches were fabricated by the solvent casting method. Following the structural characterization of BSA/Chi and BSA-SH/Chi buccal patches, the mechanical characterization was performed by tensile tests. The drug release from triamcinolone acetonide (TR) loaded buccal patches was evaluated in-vitro in simulated salivary. According to the ex-vivo buccal adhesion experiments, the mechanical and mucoadhesion properties of BSA-SH/Chi buccal patch had improved compared to BSA/Chi buccal patch. The total cumulative TR permeated after 12 h was higher for BSASH/Chi than BSA/Chi buccal patches. The developed mucoadhesive buccal patches were found to be biocompatible in vitro. To conclude, the thiolated BSA-SH/Chi buccal adhesive patch is a promising biomaterial for a satisfied drug delivery, which provides advantages for various oral applications.