Aggregation behaviour of tetracaine hydrochloride with Gemini surfactants and the formation of silver nanoparticles using drug-Gemini surfactants mixture

This study aimed to encapsulate drug into the silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) by using drug-Gemini surfactant mixed aggregate. The applicability of drug-surfactant based AgNPs is to carry the maximum amount of drug during the drug delivery process. The nano-size mixed aggregate was prepared by a local anaesthetic amphiphilic drug, tetracaine hydrochloride (TC) and Gemini surfactants, pentamethylene-1, 5-bis(tetradecyldimethylammonium bromide) (GS-5, 14-5-14) and hexamethylene-1,6-bis(tetradecyldimethylammonium bromide) (GS-6, 14-6-14). Surface tension and conductance measurements were used to determine the physiological and thermodynamic interaction parameters of TC-GS-5/GS-6. The negative beta(m) values suggested as the synergistic interactions observed between TC and GS-5/GS-6 mixed aggregate. The TC-GSs mixture was used to stabilizing silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) with a different mole fraction alpha(pi) 0.0-0.99 in aqueous media. The resulting AgNPs characterized by UV-Vis spectroscopy and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Dynamic light scattering (DLS) suggested that the different types of aggregate formed in aqueous media depending on the internal packing arrangements of TC-GS-5/GS-6. The mole fraction base formulation of drug-surfactant could control the mixed aggregates which could be used to formed drug surfactant based nanoparticles to enhance the performance of drug delivery. (C) 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.