Synthesis and characterization of magnesium gluconate contained poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid)/chitosan microspheres

•Magnesium gluconate contained PLGA/chitosan microspheres were fabricated.•In vitro release of magnesium ions was performed using Xylidyl Blue assay.•Chitosan coated PLGA can significantly control the release of magnesium ions.•Cellular compatibility was tested using adipose-derived stem cells and PC12 cells.•The cells encounter acceptably low levels of damage in contact with microspheres.

The goal of this study was to fabricate and investigate the chitosan coated poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) microspheres for the development of controlled release magnesium delivery system. PLGA based microspheres are ideal vehicles for many controlled release drug delivery applications. Chitosan is a naturally occurring biodegradable and biocompatible polysaccharide, which can coat the surface of PLGA to alter the release of drugs. Magnesium gluconate (MgG) was encapsulated in the PLGA and PLGA/chitosan microspheres by utilizing the double emulsion solvent evaporation technique for controlled release study. The microspheres were tested with respect to several physicochemical and biological properties, including morphology, chemical structure, chitosan adsorption efficiency, magnesium encapsulation efficiency, in vitro release of magnesium ions, and cellular compatibility using both human adipose-derived stem cells (ASCs) and PC12 cells. Chitosan coated PLGA microspheres can significantly control the release of magnesium ions compared to uncoated PLGA microspheres. Both coated and uncoated microspheres showed good cellular compatibility.

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