(464f) Construction and Characterization of Biodegradable Chitosan Microneedle Patch for Transdermal Delivery of Meloxicam As a Pain Management Drug Approach for Use in Cattle

The term “animal welfare” refers to the relationships that people have with animals, specifically related to the duty of assuring that the animals under their care are treated compassionately and responsibly. Countries including Canada, USA, Australia, and Belgium have amply demonstrated interest in farm animal welfare, reporting concerns during routine animal management practices such as castration, dehorning, and tail docking in cattle. In the United States, dairy producers have recognized that these practices are painful, but analgesia is rarely provided. Hence, many livestock animals are not handled daily. Consequently, inflicting and alleviating pain are mentioned continuously as key societal concerns for animal welfare. Few pain medications exist commercially that are Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved for use in cattle. Flunixin meglumine, which is a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID is one FDA-approved pain management medication for livestock animals. A significant issue with flunixin meglumine is the degradation half-life, which is only 6.2 hours, and its administration by injection or topical application every 12 to 24 hours to maintain analgesia. Meloxicam is a promising NSAID alternative, with a relatively long half-life of 28 hours. Administration of meloxicam results in systemic analgesia and reduced inflammation by reducing the synthesis of inflammatory prostaglandin by inhibition of cyclooxygenase enzymes. Unfortunately, meloxicam delivery to animals is given orally through suspension or tablet form, which is not amenable for livestock administration. In this study, we developed a chitosan-based biodegradable polymeric microneedle patch for the delivery of meloxicam as a pain management drug approach for use in cattle. In terms of functionality, the microneedle patch was tested against, capacity to penetrate the skin, chemical composition, and physical characteristics. SEM characterization demonstrated the presence of microneedles uniformly organized on the patch surface which were successfully fabricated using any percentages of acetic acid assessed. FTIR characterization demonstrated that chitosan and chitosan/meloxicam microneedle patches preserve the chemical composition of the chitosan polymer and meloxicam drug. In-vitro microneedle insertion study demonstrated that microneedle patches were able to penetrate cow’s ear cadaver skin. This system of biodegradable microneedle patch will help to extend the use of the FDA-approved meloxicam in the pharmaceutical field how pain management medication for livestock animals.