Development of chitosan loaded metronidazole nanoparticle as stable local drug delivery for periodontal treatment

• Main Authors: Mohd Zayi, Nora Azirah, Mohamed Halim, Muhammad Lutfi, Mohamad, Mohd Yusof, Harun Ismail, Ahmad Fahmi, Arzmi, Mohd Hafiz
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: IIUM Press 2022
• Subjects: QR Microbiology; RK Dentistry
• Online Access: http://irep.iium.edu.my/96943/6/96943_Development%20of%20chitosan%20loaded%20metronidazole%20nanoparticle.pdf; http://irep.iium.edu.my/96943/; https://journals.iium.edu.my/ktn/index.php/ijohs/issue/download/9/8

Metronidazole is one of the most effective antibiotics for treating bacterial infections in periodontal disease. However, antibiotic resistance has emerged as one of the biggest risks to public health worldwide. Consequently, new approaches are required to manage the drawback of conventional antibiotics and prevent the emergence of antibiotic-resistant. The drug entrapped, attached, or encapsulated in the nanomaterial matrix shows great potential in medical applications. The combination of nanotechnology and antibiotics would be the most promising strategy to overcome antibiotic-resistant bacteria and improving drug efficiency. Thus, this study aims to optimise the drug size, stability, and encapsulation efficiency within a nanocarrier before using it as a therapeutic agent in periodontal treatment. The concentrations of chitosan and metronidazole were chosen as optimising parameters at constant crosslinker sodium tripolyphosphate (STPP). Chitosan-loaded metronidazole nanoparticles (CS-MNPs) were fabricated by ionic gelation of chitosan with tripolyphosphate anions, and the prepared nanoparticles were evaluated for particle size, zeta potential, and drug entrapment efficiency. In this study, the smallest CS NPS of 303.86 ± 62.78 nm was successfully developed through ionic crosslinking with a stable NPs surface charge of 46.6 ± 0.231 mV at a CS: MN mass ratio of 3: 1. The entrapment efficiency of 88% was achieved when MN was loaded into CS the nanoparticles. The result showed that highly stable chitosan-loaded metronidazole nanoparticles were developed by the ionic crosslinking method. This nanoparticle has the potential to increase the efficacy of the drug while decreasing the antibiotic's effect. However, further studies are needed to evaluate the suitability of chitosan-loaded metronidazole nanoparticles for periodontal treatment.