Evaluation of Thermally Crosslinked Poly(Acrylic Acid-Co-Maleic Acid) (PAMA)/Poly(Vinyl Alcohol) (PVA) Microneedle Arrays

Abstract

This study aimed to evaluate the optimal conditions for crosslinked of PAMA/PVA microneedle (MN) arrays. Poly (acrylic acid-co-maleic acid) (PAMA)/poly (vinyl alcohol) (PVA) MN arrays were fabricated for the first time using the micromolding technique. The PAMA/PVA MN arrays at the polymer ratio of 1:4 were sharp, homogenous and perfectly formed with an elegant appearance. The successfully crosslinking MN arrays were determined using FTIR and water insolubilization. The results showed that increasing the crosslinking temperature and time, the degree of crosslinking also improved, which results in a decline in water uptake. The optimal crosslinking condition for PAMA/PVA MN arrays was 130°C for 1 h. Moreover, the highest swelling was observed from crosslinked PAMA/PVA MN arrays at 90°C for 0.5 h. These studies suggest that the combination of PAMA and PVA for fabrication of MN arrays could have a great potential to develop both hydrogel and dissolving MN devices for transdermal drug delivery.