# Agar/β-Cyclodextrin Composite Cryogels for Controlled Release of Aripiprazole

## TL;DR

Researchers developed a new drug delivery system using agar and β-cyclodextrin cryogels to improve the solubility and controlled release of aripiprazole, an antipsychotic drug.

## Contribution

A novel composite cryogel system using agar and β-cyclodextrin is introduced for pH-dependent controlled release of aripiprazole.

## Key findings

- The cryogel system showed pH-dependent release of aripiprazole, with slower release in acidic conditions.
- Approximately 33% of aripiprazole was released over 48 hours in in vitro tests.
- The cryogels exhibited desirable properties like high swelling and elastic characteristics suitable for drug delivery.

## Abstract

Aripiprazole (ARZ) is an atypical antipsychotic drug used to treat a variety of mood and psychotic disorders, such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, major depressive disorder, autism, and Tourette’s syndrome. Although ARZ offers significant therapeutic benefits, its poor solubility in water requires the development of delivery systems aimed at improving the solubility and bioavailability of the drug. In this work, cryogels based on two natural products—agar and β-cyclodextrin (CD)—were developed and evaluated as a drug delivery system for ARZ. The cryogels were prepared by cryogenic treatment of aqueous solutions of agar and the β-CD/ARZ complex, followed by thawing. The main characteristics of the material, including gel fraction yield, swelling degree, pore volume, elastic properties, and morphology were studied in detail. The release of ARZ from composite cryogels was assessed in two media resembling the pH in stomach and intestine. The system exhibited a pH-dependent release of ARZ, with a slower rate in acidic media (pH 1.2) than in the neutral phosphate buffer (pH 6.8). Under in vitro conditions, the amount of released ARZ over 48 h reached 33%.