Preparation and biocompatibility of alginate/poly(L-arginine) microcapsules

A novel drug carrier based on alginate and poly-L-arginine was fabricated. The alginate/poly(L-arginine) microcapsules with good sphericity,  smooth surface and well roportioned particle size were prepared by the high voltage electrostatic method. According to the standard for the biological evaluation of medical devices,  the biocompatibility of alginate/poly(L-arginine) microcapsules was studied. The cytotoxicity studies show that the alginate/poly(L-arginine) microcapsules have no significant growth inhibition effect on L929 cells when they were used at 0.1,  0.5,  1.0 mg/mL. The extract productions of the alginate/poly(L-arginine) microcapsules do not show cytotoxic effect even at 10.0 mg/mL. The alginate/poly(L-arginine) microcapsules have no acute systemic toxicity and no hemolytic reaction. All results indicate that the alginate/poly(L-arginine) microcapsules,  prepared by the high voltage electrostatic method,  have acceptable biocompatibility and might be an appropriate candidate for macromolecule drug delivery,  and it is worthy of a further research.