Development and Characterization of Lysozyme-Loaded Gum Arabic as Buccal Films

Methods: Lysozyme-loaded gum arabic (GA) films were developed using a solvent-casting method and optimized through a 23 full factorial design to evaluate the effects of GA, citric acid (CA), and propylene glycol (PG) on film performance. Dependent variables included breaking hardness, mucoadhesivity, film thickness, moisture content, surface free energy (SFE), water uptake percentage, and disintegration time. A comprehensive set of evaluations was performed, including mechanical testing, mucoadhesion measurements, moisture and hydration analysis, disintegration time and surface free energy determination. Results: Mechanical testing revealed adequate flexibility, with breaking hardness values of a minimum of 10.8 N in the optimized formulation. Moisture content remained within an acceptable range, reaching approximately 1.5%, which contributed to suitable flexibility and handling. Disintegration testing showed rapid hydration behavior, with the optimized film disintegrating in an average of 2.98 min. Statistical analysis identified significant effects of GA, CA, and PG concentrations on several properties individually or interacting with each other, enabling the selection of an optimal combination that balanced mechanical integrity and mucoadhesivity. Conclusions: Overall, the optimized GA-based films demonstrate strong potential as a new effective mucoadhesive carrier for lysozyme delivery.