Development and characterization of self-aggregated nanoparticles from anacardoylated chitosan as a carrier for insulin

Nanoparticulate carriers made from biodegradable polymers especially from chitosan seems to be an excellent approach to increase the uptake and transport of orally administered insulin. Various approaches have been studied to develop nanoparticles from chitosan including self-aggregated nanoparticles from hydrophobically modified chitosan. Anacardic acid is a naturally occurring fatty acid having bulky aromatic group as well as long aliphatic chain and an amphiphilic monomer of great potential. An attempt has been made to develop and characterize self-aggregated nanoparticles from chitosan modified with anacardic acid. Anacardoylated chitosan spontaneously formed nanoparticles in aqueous insulin solution with a particles size of 214 nm diameter at neutral pH. The hydrophobic nature of the nanoparticles helped in the sustained release of insulin in the intestinal environment and the released insulin was stable and retained its conformation. However, it released insulin in acidic conditions and need to be encapsulated in alginate to render pH sensitiveness.