Synthesis of xanthan gum/trimethyl chitosan interpolyelectrolyte complex as pH-sensitive protein carrier

Protein delivery journey through gastrointestinal (GI) tract faces many challenges due to its physicochemical instabilities, fugitive half-life, and less absorption efficiency. Herein, the aim is the study of both the encapsulation and in-vitro-release of the bovine serum albumin (BSA) through pHs of GI tract within the green synthesized interpolyelectrolyte complex, which was prepared from biodegradable polymers as XG and TMC-based highly an efficient pH-sensitive protein carrier to solve the drawbacks of the protein delivery through GI tract. The structures of XG/TMC PEC and BSA-loaded PEC were elucidated using different analysis tools like FTIR, FE-SEM, EDX, and XRD techniques. The BSA-loaded and released profiles were determined in pH 1.2 (gastric simulated pH) and pH 7.4 (intestine simulated pH) media. Best BSA-loaded results were obtained with the increase in XG concentration, BSA-loaded concentration, and encapsulation time. Moreover, in vitro BSA release results showed that the amount of BSA released in pH 7.4 was higher than that in pH 1.2 and also went up with the rise within the amount from 12 to 120 h to be 97.9% in pH 7.4 and 29.7% in pH 1.2 at 120 h. Moreover, according to SDS-PAGE technique, the BSA was released in intact form out of the PECs; thus, the encapsulation and released conditions did not affect the structural integrity of BSA structure. Finally, the cytotoxicity study of the prepared PEC showed safe and good biocompatibility properties against the traditional human melanocyte cell line.