Abstract
Drug-loaded hydrophilic polymeric composite (HPC) is one of the most promising biomaterials for resolving the long-standing challenge of the development of oral solid formulations for insoluble drugs. With polyvinylpyrrolidone K10 (PVP) as polymeric carrier and sodium dodecyl sulfonate (SDS) as a surface active agent, a new type of HPC was fabricated for enhancing the dissolution of quercetin using an electrospraying process. A solvent mixture consisting of acetic acid, acetone and ethanol were exploited to prepare the co-dissolving solution of quercetin, PVP, and SDS for creating HPC. Both the sprayed nanoparticles and casting film fabricated using a thermal solvent evaporation process were amorphous composites, as demonstrated by the XRD results. ATR-FTIR spectra verified that the drug and the pharmaceutical carriers had good compatibility. In vitro dissolution experiments showed that the sprayed HPC could provide an over ten-fold faster dissolution rate than the casting film. Electrospraying is a facile method for developing new kinds of HPCs for insoluble drugs.