Photopolymerization of amitriptyline hydrochloride loaded GelMA-based hydrogel tablets

Abstract

Three-dimensional (3D) printing technology consists of multiple manufacturing techniques that have changed the perspective on personalized medicine by being able to be used as a manufacturing method for personalized medicine. Existing 3D printing technologies do not provide the necessary printing resolution and speed for the fast-paced clinical setting. Photopolymerization is a printing technique that can print drug-loaded objects with high accuracy, fast speed and without the restrictions of complex geometric shapes. Negative cylindrical molds with varying volumes were produced using an Ultimaker S3 to create different amitriptyline-loaded cylindrical GelMa-based hydrogel tablets by the photopolymerization 3D printing technique. The release mechanism and content uniformity of the amitriptyline hydrogel tablets were analyzed. All the tablets used in the dissolution study successfully released 80 to 95% of the amitriptyline into the dissolution container after 1 to 4 hours of being submerged in Milli-Q. The tablets with low to medium amitriptyline dosages showcased a hindered Fickian diffusion mechanism, while the high dosage tablets showed an anomalous diffusion mechanism. The drug contents of the tablets were uniform except for the medium dose hydrogel tablets. Photopolymerization can be used as a 3D printing technique to produce amitriptyline-loaded GelMa-based hydrogel tablets in custom designed and printed TPU molds with therapeutic dosages and sustained release mechanisms.