ABSTRACT
The polymers, due to their diverse applications and functionalities, are among the most used excipients to obtain pharmaceutical forms, with emphasis on chitosan. This study aimed to develop and evaluate comparatively membranes of chitosan to different concentrations of the plant species Cissus verticillata (L.) Nicolson & C.E. Jarvis (insulin), in order to use in a drug delivery system. It was realized data collection, botanical identification and the obtaining of the crude alcohol extract (CAE) of the plant. For the production of chitosan and crude alcohol extracted chitosan membrane, it is used the solvent evaporation technique. The membranes were divided into groups: CM (chitosan membrane), CM5 (5% of crude alcohol extracted chitosan membrane) e CM20 (20% of crude alcohol extracted chitosan membrane), being the samples characterized by the techniques of Optical Microscopy (OM), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), of Tensile Strength and Cytotoxicity. Macroscopically analyzing the membranes revealed a change in color as the percentage of CAE increased, making the samples darker. The MO and SEM analyzes showed membranes with smooth and regular surface. The mechanical tensile strength test revealed a decrease in tensile strength when 5% of CAE was added and increased with 20% of CAE. The cytotoxicity test showed that all samples are viable for use in biological systems. Therefore, it was concluded that it was possible to develop chitosan membranes with different concentrations of CAE, and that the CM group has a higher resistance to tension in relation to the other groups.
Keywords
Membranes; Chitosan; Medicinal plants
