Hydrogel/enzyme drug delivery oscillator

摘要

Treatment of certain endocrine reproductive disorders requires rhythmic delivery of hormones to emulate endogenous, pulsatile secretion. The feasibility of an implantable, autonomous, oscilaltory drug delivery device for this purpose is being investigated. The principle underlying the operation of such a device has been described in detail. The device consists of a chamber containing glucose oxidase (GOX) and the hormone of interest. The chamber communicates with the external environment through a pH responsive hydrogel membrane. The device employs a negative feedback instability between two processes, (i) flux of glucose through the hydrogel membrane and (ii) GOX-catalyzed conversion of glucose to gluconic acid, to achieve oscillations in membrane permeability and release of hormone.