Electrically induced opening of composite PLA/SWCNT microchambers for implantable drug depot systems

Time- and site-specific release of bioactive compounds mediated by microcontainers immobilized on a surface is of high importance in a variety of tasks related to biomedicine and functional coatings. In the present work, we investigate arrays of hollow microchambers formed by composite shells based on a polylactic acid matrix and single-walled carbon nanotubes filler with high responsiveness towards electric current stimuli. The monitoring of the morphology changes reveals significant damages to the shells of microchambers formed by conductive composite material. The voltage of 3 V is shown to be sufficient to induce thermal damages to the microchambers. This study demonstrates the in-principle possibility to realize the opening of polylactic acid-based microchambers by application of low-power currents. The developed system opens a promising avenue for implantable delivery routes in a number of areas related to smart coatings, time and site-specific release. We believe these results will find application in the development of new implantable drug depot systems in biomedicine and cosmetology.