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Manufacturing and characterisation of 3D-printed sustained-release Timolol implants for glaucoma treatment.

Manufacturing and characterisation of 3D-printed sustained-release Timolol implants for glaucoma treatment.

Authors :
Paleel F
Qin M
Tagalakis AD
Yu-Wai-Man C
Lamprou DA
Source :
Drug delivery and translational research [Drug Deliv Transl Res] 2025 Jan; Vol. 15 (1), pp. 242-252. Date of Electronic Publication: 2024 Apr 05.
Publication Year :
2025

Abstract

Timolol maleate (TML) is a beta-blocker drug that is commonly used to lower the intraocular pressure in glaucoma. This study focused on using a 3D printing (3DP) method for the manufacturing of an ocular, implantable, sustained-release drug delivery system (DDS). Polycaprolactone (PCL), and PCL with 5 or 10% TML implants were manufactured using a one-step 3DP process. Their physicochemical characteristics were analysed using light microscopy, scanning electronic microscopy (SEM), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) / thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA), and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The in vitro drug release was evaluated by UV-spectrophotometry. Finally, the effect of the implants on cell viability in human trabecular meshwork cells was assessed. All the implants showed a smooth surface. Thermal analysis demonstrated that the implants remained thermally stable at the temperatures used for the printing, and FTIR studies showed that there were no significant interactions between PCL and TML. Both concentrations (5 & 10%) of TML achieved sustained release from the implants over the 8-week study period. All implants were non-cytotoxic to human trabecular cells. This study shows proof of concept that 3DP can be used to print biocompatible and personalised ocular implantable sustained-release DDSs for the treatment of glaucoma.<br />Competing Interests: Declarations. Ethics approval and consent to participate: Not applicable in these studies. Consent for publication: Not applicable, there are no human’s participation in these studies. Competing interests: The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.<br /> (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Details

Language :
English
ISSN :
2190-3948
Volume :
15
Issue :
1
Database :
MEDLINE
Journal :
Drug delivery and translational research
Publication Type :
Academic Journal
Accession number :
38578377
Full Text :
https://doi.org/10.1007/s13346-024-01589-8