Use of mesoporous silicate nanoparticles as drug carrier for mefenamic acid

The aim of the study is to evaluate the use of mesoporous silicate nanoparticles for the loading and release of the non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug, mefenamic acid. Nanoparticles of the mesoporous silicate materials, MCM-41 and SBA-16 were synthesized and characterized by XRD, SEM, FT-IR, TGA and BET surface area techniques. Both silicate systems were loaded with mefenamic acid with loading capacities of 18.6% and 11.6%, respectively. The in vitro release of mefenamic acid into simulated body fluid (pH = 7.4) at 37°C was investigated. The percent release was nonlinearly regressed against time (t) according to the first order kinetic release model; Higuchi's first burst model and Kopcha's empirical model. The overall %release was obtained for both silicate systems and was found to be about 60%. Analysis of results show the rate of drug release is more rapid from SBA-16 (the more interconnected porous network) than from MCM-41. It also show that drug release from either mesoporous silicate is a diffusion controlled process. (paper)