3D printing of pharmaceuticals offers a unique opportunity for long-term, sustained drug release profiles for an array of treatment options. Unfortunately, this approach is often limited by physical compounding and compatibility issues or by processing limitations. However, modification of the active drug into a prodrug compound allows for seamless incorporation compatible with advanced manufacturing methods for producing complex tissue scaffolds, demonstrated here using salicylic acid with tunable chemistries for control of physical and chemical properties. The role of different salicylic acid derivatives (salicylic acid, 3-bromosalicylic acid, 3-iodosalicylic acid) and of linker species (allyl ester, allyl ester allyl ether, allyl ester allyl carbonate) were investigated using thiol-ene crosslinking in digital light processing (DLP) 3D printing to produce porous and solid pro-drug tissue scaffolds containing more than 50% salicylic acid. Salicylic acid resins were all found to be highly reactive (solidification within 5 s of irradiation at 405 nm), while the crosslinked solids display tunable thermomechanical behaviors with low glass transition temperatures (<i>T<sub>g</sub></i>s) and elastomeric behaviors, with the carbonate species displaying elastic moduli matching that of adipose tissue (approximately 65 kPa). Drug release profiles were found to be zero order, sustained release based upon hydrolytic degradation of multi-layered scaffolds incorporating fluorescent model compounds, with release rates tuned through selection of the linker species. Cytocompatibility in 2D and 3D was further demonstrated for all species compared to polycarbonate controls, as well as salicylic acid-containing composites (physical incorporation), over a 2-week period using murine fibroblasts. The use of drugs as the matrix material for solid pro-drug tissue scaffolds opens the door to novel therapeutic strategies, longer sustained release, and even reduced complications for advanced medicine.

Printable shape memory salicylic acid photopolymer as drug-eluting biomaterial

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ACS Fall 2022

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.