Sara Cascone

@article{Caccavo2018,

title = {Hydrogels: experimental characterization and mathematical modelling of their mechanical and diffusive behaviour},

author = {Diego Caccavo and Sara Cascone and Gaetano Lamberti and Anna Angela Barba},

url = {http://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlelanding/2018/cs/c7cs00638a#!divAbstract},

doi = {10.1039/C7CS00638A},

issn = {0306-0012},

year  = {2018},

date = {2018-04-07},

journal = {Chemical Society Reviews},

volume = {47},

number = {7},

pages = {2357-2373},

abstract = {Hydrogels are materials widely used in countless applications, particularly in the biomedical, pharmaceutical, and nutraceutical fields, because of their biocompatibility and their mechanical and transport properties. Several approaches are known to evaluate their properties, but only a few approaches are under development to mathematically describe their behaviour, in terms of how the materials answer to mechanical stimuli and how incorporated active substances are released. In this review, the main properties of hydrogels are summarized and the structure\textendashproperty relationships are investigated (i.e. how the macromolecular structure influences the properties of macroscopic samples made of hydrogels). A selection criterion is proposed based on the comparison of three characteristic times: relaxation time, diffusion time, and process time. Then, the most common experimental methods to investigate the hydrogel properties are summarized, along with the state-of-the-art of mathematical modelling, with reference to the mechanical and transport properties of hydrogels, with particular attention to the viscoelastic and poroelastic behaviours. Last but not least, some case histories which can be classified as viscoelastic, poroelastic, or poroviscoelastic behaviours are presented.},

keywords = {Hydrogel Characterization, Hydrogel Modeling},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{NPC02,

title = {Modeling of the behavior of natural polysaccharides hydrogels for bio-pharma applications},

author = {Diego Caccavo and Sara Cascone and Gaetano Lamberti and Annalisa Dalmoro and Anna Angela Barba},

url = {http://www.naturalproduct.us/index.asp

https://www.gruppotpp.it/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Caccavo-et-al-NPC-126-867-871-2017-Abstract.pdf},

issn = {1934-578X},

year  = {2017},

date = {2017-07-31},

journal = {Natural Product Communications},

volume = {12},

number = {6},

pages = {867-871},

abstract = {Hydrogels, even if not exclusively obtained from natural sources, are widely used for pharmaceuticals and for biomedical applications. The reasons for their uses are their biocompatibility and the possibility to obtain systems and devices with different properties, due to variable characteristics of the materials. In order to effectively design and produce these systems and devices, two main ways are available: i) trial-and-error process, at least guided by experience, during which the composition of the system and the production steps are changed in order to get the desired behavior; ii) production process guided by the a-priori simulation of the systems’ behavior, thanks to proper tuned mathematical models of the reality. Of course the second approach, when applicable, allows tremendous savings in term of human and instrumental resources.

In this mini-review, several modeling approaches useful to describe the behavior of natural polysaccharide-based hydrogels in bio-pharma applications are reported. In particular, reported case histories are: i) the size calculation of micro-particles obtained by ultrasound assisted atomization; ii) the release kinetics from core-shell micro-particles, iii) the solidification behavior of blends of synthetic and natural polymers for gel paving of blood vessels, iv) the drug release from hydrogel-based tablets. This material can be seen as a guide toward the use of mathematical modeling in bio-pharma applications. 

},

keywords = {Hydrogel Characterization, Hydrogel Modeling, Hydrogels, Mathematical modeling, Modeling},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{Caccavo2017b,

title = {Mechanics and transport phenomena in agarose-based hydrogels studied by compression-relaxation tests},

author = {Diego Caccavo and Sara Cascone and Serena Poto and Gaetano Lamberti and Anna Angela Barba},

url = {http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0144861717302837},

doi = {10.1016/j.carbpol.2017.03.027},

year  = {2017},

date = {2017-07-01},

journal = {Carbohydrate Polymers},

volume = {167},

pages = {136\textendash144},

abstract = {Hydrogels are widespread materials, used in several frontier fields, due to their peculiar behavior: they couple solvent  mass transport to system mechanics, exhibiting viscoelastic and poroelastic characteristics. The full understanding of this behavior is crucial to correctly design such complex systems. In this study agarose gels has been investigated through experimental stress-relaxation tests and with the aid of a 3D poroviscoelastic model. At the investigated experimental conditions, the agarose gels samples show a prevalent viscoelastic behavior, revealing limited water transport and an increase of the stiffness as well as of the relaxation time along with the polymer concentration. The model parameters, derived from the fitting of some experimental data, have been generalized and used to purely predict the behavior of another set of gels. The stress-relaxation tests coupled with mathematical modeling demonstrated to be a powerful tool to study hydrogels’ behavior. },

keywords = {Hydrogel Characterization, Hydrogel Modeling},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{Caccavo2015b,

title = {Understanding the adhesion phenomena in carbohydrate-hydrogel-based systems: Water up-take, swelling and elastic detachment},

author = { Diego Caccavo and Gaetano Lamberti and Sara Cascone and Anna Angela Barba and Anette Larsson},

url = {http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0144861715004476},

doi = {10.1016/j.carbpol.2015.05.041},

issn = {01448617},

year  = {2015},

date = {2015-10-01},

journal = {Carbohydrate Polymers},

volume = {131},

pages = {41--49},

abstract = {The bio-adhesion is a complex phenomenon which takes place when two materials (at least one of biological nature, the other usually is a polymeric one) are held together for extended periods of time, usually for local drug delivery purposes. Despite bio-adhesion is widely exploited in commercial pharmaceuticals such as the buccal patches, the underlying phenomena of the process are not completely clarified yet. In this study experimental tests, in which the role of biological membranes is played by a water-rich agarose gel whereas patches are mimicked by hydrogel tablets (made of Carbopol or of Carbopol added with NaCl), have been used to analyze the behavior of the model system above described. Tablets have been forced to adhere on the agarose gel, and after a given contact time they have been detached, recording the required forces. Furthermore weight gain of the tablets (the water transported from the agarose gel toward the tablet) has been quantified. Water transport (during the time in which the contact between tablet and agarose gel is held) and elastic part of mechanical response during the detachment are modelled to achieve a better understanding of the adhesion process. Both the two sub-models nicely reproduce, respectively, the weight gain as well as the swelling of the Carbopol tablets, and the point at which the mechanical response ceases to be purely elastic.},

keywords = {Bio-adhesion, Carbopol, Elastic behavior, Hydrogel Characterization, Hydrogel Modeling, Modeling, Water transport},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{Caccavo2015a,

title = {Controlled drug release from hydrogel-based matrices: Experiments and modeling.},

author = { Diego Caccavo and Sara Cascone and Gaetano Lamberti and Anna Angela Barba},

url = {http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378517315002707},

doi = {10.1016/j.ijpharm.2015.03.054},

issn = {1873-3476},

year  = {2015},

date = {2015-03-01},

journal = {International journal of pharmaceutics},

volume = {486},

number = {1-2},

pages = {144--152},

abstract = {Controlled release by oral administration is mainly achieved by pharmaceuticals based on hydrogels. Once swallowed, a matrix made of hydrogels experiences water up-take, swelling, drug dissolution and diffusion, polymer erosion. The detailed understanding and quantification of such a complex behavior is a mandatory prerequisite to the design of novel pharmaceuticals for controlled oral delivery. In this work, the behavior of hydrogel-based matrices has been investigated by means of several experimental techniques previously pointed out (gravimetric, and based on texture analysis); and then all the observed features were mathematically described using a physical model, defined and recently improved by our research group (based on balance equations, rate equations and swelling predictions). The agreement between the huge set of experimental data and the detailed calculations by the model is good, confirming the validity of both the experimental and the theoretical approaches.},

keywords = {Hydrogel Characterization, Hydrogel Modeling, Hydrogels, Modeling, Texture analysis, Transport phenomena, Water uptake},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{Caccavo2015,

title = {Hydrogel-based Granular Phytostrengtheners for Prolonged Release: Production and Characterization},

author = { Diego Caccavo and Sara Cascone and Maria Chiara Amoroso and Pietro Apicella and Gaetano Lamberti and Anna Angela Barba},

url = {http://www.aidic.it/cet/15/44/040.pdf},

doi = {10.3303/CET1544040},

year  = {2015},

date = {2015-01-01},

journal = {Chemical Engineering Transaction},

volume = {44},

pages = {235--240},

abstract = {Soil wellness is an indispensable requirement to obtain fruits and vegetables with finest quality and with high yields. To the purpose, periodical administrations of nutrients, as well as phytostrengtheners could be required. Crucial goals to maximize the economic and environmental sustainability of the whole cultivation are the decrease of the dosages number together with the increase of the active substance availability within the soil. With these aims a controlled release phytostrengtheners encapsulated in a granular Hydroxypropyl methylcellulose matrix has been developed exploiting the wet granulation process. The granular product has been analyzed in terms of Particle Size Distribution (PSD), morphology and flowability. The results showed the effectiveness of the granulation process and the good flowability of the granules, highly desirable features for the product handling and commercialization.},

keywords = {Granulation, Hydrogel Characterization, Tecnagri},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{Cascone2014,

title = {Measurements of non-uniform water content in hydroxypropyl-methyl-cellulose based matrices via texture analysis},

author = { Sara Cascone and Gaetano Lamberti and Giuseppe Titomanlio and Matteo D'Amore and Anna Angela Barba},

url = {http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0144861713012757},

doi = {10.1016/j.carbpol.2013.12.060},

issn = {01448617},

year  = {2014},

date = {2014-03-01},

journal = {Carbohydrate Polymers},

volume = {103},

pages = {348--354},

abstract = {The use of hydrogels in the preparation of controlled release pharmaceutical forms is extensively diffused. The main feature of these polymers is their ability to swell forming a gel layer when they enter in contact with fluids. Once the gel layer is formed, the drug contained in the matrix can easily diffuse ensuring a controlled release from the tablet. Measurement of water content within a hydrating matrix based on hydrogels is a key topic in the study of pharmaceutical solid dosage forms. The aim of this work is to evaluate the water content of swollen matrices composed by HPMC and theophylline both in axial and in radial direction, as a function of time, using a texture analysis. A relationship between water content and slope of the force\textendashpenetration curves has been obtained using a simplified system in which the water uptake is allowed only in radial direction, obtaining thus partially hydrated matrices with the water content varying only along the radial direction. Once the relationship has been validated, it has been applied in a more complex system in which the polymer swelling takes place in both axial and radial direction. Thus, using the texture analysis it has been possible to determine the water in each position within the hydrated matrices.},

keywords = {Hydrogel Characterization, Hydrogels, Texture analysis, Water content},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{Lamberti2013a,

title = {Measurements of water content in hydroxypropyl-methyl-cellulose based hydrogels via texture analysis.},

author = { Gaetano Lamberti and Sara Cascone and Maria Margherita Cafaro and Giuseppe Titomanlio and Matteo D'Amore and Anna Angela Barba},

url = {http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0144861712010193},

doi = {10.1016/j.carbpol.2012.10.003},

issn = {1879-1344},

year  = {2013},

date = {2013-01-01},

journal = {Carbohydrate polymers},

volume = {92},

number = {1},

pages = {765--8},

abstract = {In this work, a fast and accurate method to evaluate the water content in a cellulose derivative-based matrix subjected to controlled hydration was proposed and tuned. The method is based on the evaluation of the work of penetration required in the needle compression test. The work of penetration was successfully related to the hydrogel water content, assayed by a gravimetric technique. Moreover, a fitting model was proposed to correlate the two variables (the water content and the work of penetration). The availability of a reliable tool is useful both in the quantification of the water uptake phenomena, both in the management of the testing processes of novel pharmaceutical solid dosage forms.},

keywords = {HPMC, Hydrogel Characterization, Texture analysis, Water content},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{Lamberti2012c,

title = {Controlled Release of Drugs From Hydrogel Based Matrices Systems: Experiments and Modeling},

author = { Gaetano Lamberti and Sara Cascone and Giuseppe Titomanlio and Anna Angela Barba},

issn = {0352-9568},

year  = {2012},

date = {2012-01-01},

journal = {Chemical and Biochemical Engineering Quarterly},

volume = {26},

number = {4},

pages = {321--330},

publisher = {Hrvatsko dru\v{s}tvo kemijskih in\v{z}enjera i tehnologa},

abstract = {Hydrogels are materials largely used in the formulation of pharmaceuticals since, in principle, they could produce a release system of zero-order kinetics, which is of great therapeutic interest. In this paper, a model was proposed for the description of the main transport phenomena involved in the drug release process from hydrogel matrices (water diffusion, polymer swelling, drug diffusion and polymer dissolution); the model predictions are successfully compared with a large set of experimental data, obtained working with matrices systems based on HPMC (Hydroxy Propyl Methyl Cellulose). The proposed model was found able to reproduce main features of the observed phenomena, it can thus be adopted for prediction of the performances of drug release systems from hydrogel matrices.},

keywords = {Hydrogel Characterization, Hydrogel Modeling},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}

@article{Barba2009h,

title = {On the behavior of HPMC/Theophylline matrices for controlled drug delivery},

author = { Anna Angela Barba and Matteo D'Amore and Sara Cascone and Serafina Chirico and Gaetano Lamberti and Giuseppe Titomanlio},

url = {http://doi.wiley.com/10.1002/jps.21701},

doi = {10.1002/jps.21701},

issn = {00223549},

year  = {2009},

date = {2009-11-01},

journal = {Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences},

volume = {98},

number = {11},

pages = {4100--4110},

publisher = {Wiley Subscription Services, Inc., A Wiley Company},

abstract = {Design of systems for oral controlled release of drug could take advantages from the knowledge of which phenomena take place. In this work matrices obtained by powders compression (50:50, hydroxypropyl methylcellulose, a swelling hydrogel, and theophylline, a model drug) were immersed in water at 37 degrees C, allowing the water uptake and the drug release by lateral surface, confining the cylindrical matrices between glass slides. The tablets, after given immersion times, were withdrawn, cut in several annuli, and subsequently analyzed for the drug and the water concentration radial profiles. The data confirmed the pseudo-diffusive nature of the process, allowing to give a deep insight into the drug release process from swellable hydrogel matrices. In particular, it was confirmed the presence of nonhomogeneous gel layer, rich in water and poor in drug, with a profile of drug concentration which agrees well with a pseudo-diffusion phenomenon.},

keywords = {Diffusion, drug release, HPMC, Hydrogel Characterization, swellable hydrogels, Theophylline},

pubstate = {published},

tppubtype = {article}

}