Novel pH-Sensitive Hydrogels Prepared from the Blends of Poly(vinyl alcohol) with Acrylic Acid-graft-Guar Gum Matrixes for Isoniazid Delivery

A novel type of pH-sensitive hydrogel blend of poly(vinyl alcohol) with acrylic acid-graft-guar gum has been prepared. Microspheres with a size of similar to 10 mu m were produced by the water-in-oil (w/o) emulsification method for investigating the controlled release of an antituberculosis drug, isoniazid. These novel carriers were analyzed for surface morphology, size, effect of pH, swelling, drug loading, and in vitro release of isoniazid in pH 1.2 and 7.4 media. The kinetics of drug release was analyzed using empirical equations. Release times of the drug were increased to 8 h from its nascent plasma half-life of 0.5-1.6 h.