Polycaprolactone multicore-matrix particle for the simultaneous encapsulation of hydrophilic and hydrophobic compounds produced by membrane emulsification and solvent diffusion processes

Co-encapsulation of drugs in the same carrier, as well as the development of microencapsulation processes for biomolecules using mild operating conditions, and the production of particles with tailored size and uniformity are major challenges for encapsulation technologies. In the present work, a suitable method consisting of the combination of membrane emulsification with solvent diffusion is reported for the production of multi-core matrix particles with tailored size and potential application in multi-therapies. In the emulsification step, the production of a W/O/W emulsion was carried out using a batch Dispersion Cell for formulation testing and subsequently a continuous azimuthally oscillating membrane emulsification system for the scaling-up of the process to higher capacities. In both cases precise and gentle control of droplet size and uniformity of the W/O/W emulsion was achieved, preserving the encapsulation of the drug model within the droplet. Multi-core matrix particles were produced in a post emulsification step using solvent diffusion. The compartmentalized structure of the multicore-matrix particle combined with the different chemical properties of polycaprolactone (matrix material) and fish gelatin (core material) was tested for the simultaneous encapsulation of hydrophilic (copper ions) and hydrophobic (?-tocopherol) test components. The best operating conditions for the solidification of the particles to achieve the highest encapsulation efficiency of copper ions and ?-tocopherol of 99 (±4)% and 93(±6)% respectively were found. The multi-core matrix particle produced in this work demonstrates good potential as a co-loaded delivery system.