Release of tetracycline hydrochloride from electrospun poly(ethylene-co-vinylacetate), poly(lactic acid), and a blend

Electrospun fiber mats are explored as drug delivery vehicles using tetracycline hydrochloride as a model drug. The mats were made either from poly(lactic acid) (PLA), poly (ethylene-co-vinyl acetate) (PEVA), or from a 50:50 blend of the two. The fibers were electrospun from chloroform solutions containing a small amount of methanol to solubilize the drug. The release of the tetracycline hydrochloride from these new drug delivery systems was followed by UV-VIS spectroscopy. Release profiles from the electrospun mats were compared to a commercially available drug delivery system, Actisite((R)) (Alza Corporation, Palo Alto, CA), as well as to cast films of the various formulations. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.