Development Membranes with Chitosan Delivery Systems for Cannabidiol

Cannabidiol (CBD) is an important secondary metabolite obtained obtained from Cannabis sativa L., and they might bring a new hope to patients suffering from many diseases. The extremely lipophilic nature and low oral bioavailability of cannabinoids have carried on to the study of feasible administration methods, such as using a carrier, by the chitosan membrane types. Chitosan (CS), known as a natural polysaccharide, has been studied for applications in the biomedical, biotechnological, pharmaceutical and food industries due to its characteristics: biodegradability, biocompatibility, nontoxicity, as well as for antimicrobial activity. The CS and CBD combination aims to obtain a synergistic effect and a new formulation, as a way of administration of the cannabinoids in order to treat a wide variety of affections, such as neuropathic pain or diverse skin conditions. The aim of this preliminary study was to incorporate CBD oil as an active component in CS-based films, and then the obtained membranes to be analyzed in order to identify a pharmaceutical application. Therefore, 4 types of membranes were obtained. The analyses of these were carried out in terms of morphological characteristics (macroscopically and microscopically assessments) as well as the degree of hydration. They were also analyzed-in terms of opacity / transparency. Their UV-Vis spectra have completed our preliminary study. Drug delivery technology has the potential to become a unique delivery technology to serve the pharmaceutical market on a large scale.