Refining natural rubber matrix for electrically stimulated transdermal drug delivery

This work focuses on the enhancement of transdermal delivery of indomethacin (IN) from natural rubber matrix by deproteinization, the addition of ethylene glycol (EG) as a plasticizer, and the enlarged matrix size under electrical field. The starting double-centrifuge natural rubber (DCNR) was deproteinized to produce the deproteinized natural rubber (DPNR). Both DCNR and DPNR patches were fabricated by the UV curing method, and blended with EG to enhance the IN loading and release-permeation. Using a pig skin to simulate the human skin, the IN release-permeation was found to increase with increasing plasticizer, removed protein, and applied electrical potential. [GRAPHICS] .