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Rapid fabrication method of a microneedle mold with controllable needle height and width

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Abstract

The main issue of transdermal drug delivery is that macromolecular drugs cannot diffuse through the stratum corneum of skin. Many studies have pursued micro-sized needles encapsulated with drugs to overcome this problem, as these needles can pierce the stratum corneum and allow drugs to enter the circulatory system of the human body. However, most microneedle fabrication processes are time-consuming and require expensive equipment. In this study, we demonstrate a rapid method for fabricating a microneedle mold using drawing lithography and a UV-cured resin. The mold was filled with a water-soluble material, polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP), which was then demolded to produce a water-soluble microneedle array. The results of an in vitro skin insertion test using PVP microneedles and pig ear skin demonstrated the feasibility of the microneedle mold. In addition, by controlling the viscosity of the UV-cured resin through various heat treatments, microneedles with different heights and aspect ratios were produced. Compared with other methods, this technology significantly simplifies and accelerates the mold fabrication process. In addition, the required equipment is relatively simple and inexpensive. Through this technology, we can rapidly fabricate microneedle molds with controllable dimensions for various applications.

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank the Ministry of Science and Technology of Taiwan and Chang Gung Memorial Hospital for their funding support (No. MOST 103-2221-E-182-016-MY2, CMRPD3E0381, BMRPC01).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Electronic Engineering, Chang Gung University, Taoyuan, 333, Taiwan

    Yen-Heng Lin, Wei-Chieh Hsu & Ching-Hong Hsu

  2. Graduate Institute of Medical Mechatronics, Chang Gung University, Taoyuan, 333, Taiwan

    Yen-Heng Lin

  3. Department of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Taoyuan, 333, Taiwan

    Yen-Heng Lin & Kai-Ping Chang

  4. Graduate Institute of Biochemical and Biomedical Engineering, Chang Gung University, Taoyuan, 333, Taiwan

    I.-Chi Lee & Shao-Syuan Gao

  5. Department of Neurosurgery, Chang-Gung Memorial Hospital, Taoyuan, 333, Taiwan

    I.-Chi Lee

  6. Molecular Medicine Research Center, Chang Gung University, Taoyuan, 333, Taiwan

    Kai-Ping Chang

Authors
  1. Yen-Heng Lin
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  2. I.-Chi Lee
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  3. Wei-Chieh Hsu
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  4. Ching-Hong Hsu
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  5. Kai-Ping Chang
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Yen-Heng Lin.

Additional information

Yen-Heng Lin and I.-Chi Lee contributed equally to this work.

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Lin, YH., Lee, IC., Hsu, WC. et al. Rapid fabrication method of a microneedle mold with controllable needle height and width. Biomed Microdevices 18, 85 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10544-016-0113-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10544-016-0113-8

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