Loading and delivery of sertraline using inorganic micro and mesoporous materials

Sertraline hydrochloride (designated as sertraline from now on) is an antidepressive drug with unpleasant effects in the gastric tract. Therefore, improved means of delivery allowing for a more controlled and efficient release were looked for. Two different porous materials, montmorillonite-K10 and MCM-41, were chosen as hosts. The drug was intercalated in the interlayer spacing of the clay by cation exchange and was loaded inside the MCM-41 channels by pore volume impregnation means. Spectroscopic evidence (UV/vis, FTIR, powder X-ray diffraction (XRD) and 13C CP/MAS and 29Si CP/MAS and MAS solid-state NMR), as well as elemental analysis, complemented by DFT calculations, demonstrated the presence of sertraline in the composite materials. The release processes were monitored under in vitro conditions using a simulated body fluid. The release profile from the clay is fast, indicating that a concentration peak is reached in a short period of time, while the release profile from MCM is slower but lasts longer. These differences are discussed on the basis of different therapeutic indications for both materials.