Role of hydrolytic degradation of polylactide drug carriers in developing micro- and nanoscale polylactide-based drug dosage forms

The present analytical survey explores different aspects of hydrolytic degradation of drug dosage forms (DF) based on polylactides, homopolymers of lactic acid (PLA) and copolymers of lactic and glycolic acids (PLGA). The study includes various scientific data from multiple sources describing the effect of the PLGA nanocarrier hydrolytic degradation rate on the profile of drug release from the DFs intended for intravenous and intramuscular administration, including micro- and nanoparticles, and implants. The following aspects are explored in the review: design of experiments aimed at studying the hydrolytic degradation kinetics of PLGA carriers; commonly employed analytical methods; interpretation of the mechanism of PLGA-based DF hydrolytic degradation; factors that influence the hydrolytic degradation rate of PLGA drug carriers as part of DFs; interrelation between the processes of polymer carrier hydrolytic degradation and drug substance release from the PLGA-based DFs.