Effect of lactide/glycolide monomers on release behaviors of gentamicin sulfate-loaded PLGA discs

In order to develop the desirable drug release patterns such as no lag time and exact zero-order release rate, gentamicin sulfate (GS)-loaded poly(D,L-lactide-co-glycolide) (PLGA) discs containing lactide monomer (LM) or glycolide monomer (GM) were prepared. LM or GM was applied for the controlling drug release pattern due to its non-toxic and biodegradable nature. Water absorption, mass loss, pH change, and morphology of discs were examined to study the effect of LM or GM addition. GS release showed near zero-order profile in the GS-loaded polymeric discs prepared in the presence of LM or GM (10%). The channel of GS-loaded PLGA containing LM or GM was formed by the dissolution of LM or GM. Water uptake of disc increased till 21 days from the beginning of the test. The pH variations of media declined in the same manner with the result of mass loss. The antibiosis of GS was also confirmed by bacterial inhibition zone test using the prepared polymeric discs. From these results, we expected that the polymeric discs containing LM or GM would be a good dosage form as a topically implantable device which can get rid of lag period from PLGA matrix.