Fabrication and performance of a spherical cellulose nanocrystal-based hydrophobic drug delivery vehicle using rubber wood

Abstract

Cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) were fabricated using rubber wood (RW) as the raw material via acid hydrolysis followed by ultrasonication. The CNCs samples were then grafted with succinic anhydride to obtain modified CNCs, hereafter called CS. The CS samples were subsequently coated with a cationic surfactant, cetyltrimethyl ammonium bromide, and the obtained samples were named as CC. The morphology, chemical structure, and thermal stability of the RW, CNCs, CS, and CC samples were characterized using transmission electron microscopy, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, and thermogravimetric analysis, respectively. Finally, the drug release performance was investigated using CC as the drug carrier and hesperidin, a hydrophobic drug, as the model drug. The drug release mechanism was also considered. The results of this study identified a new route for the high-value utilization of RW and also demonstrated that RW could be used as a novel substrate for the construction of cellulose-based hydrophobic drug delivery systems.