Orientador: Rosiane Lopes da Cunha / Texto em inglês e português / Tese (doutorado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Faculdade de Engenharia de Alimentos / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-22T16:01:09Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Fasolin_LuizHenrique_D.pdf: 4514107 bytes, checksum: cbdb7bfe81fe688fefd10aac2e7238ac (MD5) Previous issue date: 2013 / Resumo: Os sistemas auto-organizáveis como meio para obtenção de produtos com diferentes características têm sido estudados como uma alternativa aos métodos tradicionais de produção de emulsões e gelificação. Todavia, a formação de produtos com ingredientes biocompatíveis ainda é pouco explorada, devido à complexidade e a toxicidade de alguns dos ingredientes geralmente utilizados. Nesse contexto, o objetivo geral desse trabalho foi produzir sistemas com diferentes características a partir do estudo do diagrama de fases de sistemas compostos por água, óleo vegetal, surfactante e co-surfactante biocompatíveis, além de um biopolímero gelificante. Na primeira parte deste estudo, a influência da concentração do co-surfactante (etanol) e da insaturação do óleo (óleo de girassol comum ou óleo de girassol alto oléico, HOSO) foi investigada. Os resultados mostraram que, dependendo da composição do meio, foram obtidas diferentes estruturas (microemulsões ou líquidos cristalinos) com distintos comportamentos reológicos. A formação dessas estruturas foi influenciada pela insaturação do óleo e pela concentração de etanol. Na segunda etapa, a substituição do etanol por ácidos orgânicos (acético e propiônico) foi estudada, bem como sua influência no comportamento reológico-estrutural dos sistemas. Nesse caso, a estruturação dos sistemas foi dependente da combinação entre os ingredientes. O óleo de girassol solubilizou maior quantidade de ácido propiônico devido sua maior hidrofobicidade, enquanto o HOSO apresentou mais afinidade com o ácido acético. Essa diferença de afinidades levou a mudanças no mecanismo de difusão do co-surfactante, bem como sua susceptibilidade à partição. A fim de estudar a viabilidade da adição da goma gelana nas microemulsões para obtenção de sistemas gelificados, uma terceira etapa foi realizada com o intuito de avaliar a interação desse polissacarídeo com o surfactante. Foram observados dois comportamentos predominantes, dependendo da concentração dos componentes. Em baixas concentrações de surfactante, a rede de gelana prevaleceu formando géis fortes com claro ponto de ruptura. Com o aumento da concentração, o surfactante começou a se auto-organizar em estruturas mais complexas até que em altas concentrações sua estrutura se tornou predominante com formação de géis fracos. Na última etapa do trabalho, a goma gelana foi adicionada em alguns sistemas do diagrama de fases formulados com HOSO com ou sem ácido acético. Os géis formulados sem ácido acético foram homogêneos e dependentes da razão água/surfactante. A maior quantidade de água levou a géis mais resistentes devido à formação de uma rede de gelana mais densa. Por outro lado, maiores concentrações de surfactante levaram a géis mais fracos e ao aparecimento de uma temperatura de transição relacionada à estruturação do surfactante. A adição de ácido levou à desestabilização da estrutura cristalina, impedindo a estruturação do surfactante. Além disso, ao invés de géis homogêneos, foram formados géis particulados ou microgéis, que foram auto-sustentáveis apenas em altas concentrações de água. Por fim, este trabalho mostrou que sistemas auto-organizados são de particular utilidade na obtenção de produtos com diferentes características tecnológicas, cujas propriedades podem ser moduladas de acordo com a aplicação / Abstract: Self-assembly systems as a way to obtaining products with different characteristics have been studied as an alternative to traditional emulsification and gelation methods. However, the use of biocompatible ingredients in these systems was scarcely explored due to the complexity or toxicity of the most common ingredients. Thus, the aim of this work was to produce systems with different technological characteristics from the study of phase diagrams composed by water, edible oil, surfactant and biocompatible cosurfactants, as well as a gelling biopolymer. In the first part of this work, the influence of the cosurfactant (ethanol) concentration and oil unsaturation (sunflower oil or high oleic sunflower oil, HOSO) was investigated from the phase-diagrams construction. Results showed that depending on the systems composition different structures could be obtained (microemulsion or liquid crystalline) with different rheological behavior. Moreover, the formation of these structures was influenced by the oil unsaturation and ethanol concentration. In the second step, the replacement of ethanol by organic acids (acetic and propionic) was evaluated, as well as their influence on the rheological-structural behavior. In this case, the systems self-assemble was dependent on the ingredients combination. Sunflower oil solubilized a great amount of propionic acid due to its higher hydrophobicity, whereas HOSO presented more affinity with acetic acid. These affinity differences between oil and cosurfactant changed the diffusion mechanism of the acid through the surfactant and oil tails as well as its susceptibility to the partition phenomenon. In order to study the feasibility of gellan gum addition in the microemulsion to obtain gelled systems, a third step was carried out to evaluate the interactions between this polysaccharide and the surfactant. It was observed two prevailing behavior depending on the components concentration. At low surfactant concentration the gellan network prevailed and formed hard gels were formed with clear rupture point. With the surfactant content increase, its moieties started to self-assembly in highly organized structures until that, at high concentration, these structures became predominant with the formation of weak or soft gels. In the last part of this work gellan gum was added to some systems of the phase diagram formulated with HOSO with or without acetic acid. The gels formulated without acetic acid were homogeneous gels and dependent on the water/surfactant ratio. The higher water content led to harder gels due to the formation of a denser gellan network. On the other hand, higher surfactant concentration led to weaker gels and a transition temperature related to the surfactant structuration was observed. The acid acetic addition led to the liquid crystalline destabilization, hindering the surfactant structuration. Moreover, instead of bulky gels, particulate gels or microgels were formed, which were self-supporting only at high water concentration. Finally, this work showed that self-assembly systems are particularly useful to obtain products with different technological characteristics, whose properties can be modulated according to the application / Doutorado / Engenharia de Alimentos / Doutor em Engenharia de Alimentos

Orientador: Rosiane Lopes da Cunha / Dissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Faculdade de Engenharia de Alimentos / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-19T15:16:51Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Vilela_JoiceAlinePires_M.pdf: 1796773 bytes, checksum: 34d2e3b8b4543d7ea7cce06e84d31138 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2012 / Resumo: A encapsulação de muitos compostos bioativos, como vitaminas, bactérias probióticas e antioxidantes ajuda na incorporação, proteção, e entrega do bioativo em sítio específico, porém a eficiência da matriz carreadora depende da sua composição e processo de fabricação. Com este intuito, a viabilidade de produção e as características finais de microgéis de gelana formados por extrusão e posterior gelificação iônica foram estudadas. Micropartículas, com tamanho médio entre 70-120 ?m, foram produzidas sob condições amenas de temperatura e concentração, utilizando um processo de atomização seguido de gelificação em soluções de cloreto de cálcio (CaCl2), cloreto de potássio (KCl) ou quitosana. O tamanho das partículas mostrou-se mais dependente das condições de processo (geometria do bico aspersor e velocidade de ar) que das propriedades da solução biopolimérica. No entanto, o aumento da concentração de gelana levou a maior esfericidade dos microgéis obtidos. Com relação aos agentes gelificantes, as micropartículas com gelificação induzida por CaCl2 apresentaram formato mais esférico e maior estabilidade que as partículas formadas a partir de KCl. A obtenção de micropartículas de gelana recobertas com quitosana foi possível somente através de um processo em duas etapas. Na primeira etapa, a gelana foi gelificada através da difusão salina (CaCl2 ou KCl) e posteriormente, as partículas formadas foram recobertas com quitosana. A presença da camada externa de quitosana teve influência na resistência das partículas às condições simuladas da digestão. As partículas estudadas, com ou sem recobrimento de quitosana, resistiram à digestão gástrica, mas na digestão entérica as partículas recobertas com quitosana apresentaram menor grau de fragmentação que as partículas contendo somente gelana. Assim, foi demonstrado que a produção de microgéis formados por interação entre dois biopolímeros de cargas opostas melhorou a eficiência das partículas como material de parede sendo este um potencial veículo de compostos bioativos / Abstract: The encapsulation of many bioactive compounds such as vitamins, antioxidants and probiotic bacteria allows the incorporation, protection, and delivery of bioactive on a specific site, but the efficiency of carrier matrix depends on its composition and manufacturing process. To this aim, the feasibility of production and the final characteristics of the gellan microgels obtained by extrusion process followed by ionic gelation were studied. Microparticles, with average size among 70-120 ?m, were produced under mild conditions of temperature and concentration using an atomization process followed by gelation induced by calcium chloride (CaCl2), potassium chloride (KCl) or chitosan solutions. The particle size was more dependent on process conditions (nozzle geometry and air velocity) than the properties of the biopolymeric solution. However, the increase in gellan concentration led to more spherical microgels. In relation to hardening agents, the microparticles with gelation induced by CaCl2 showed more spherical shape and greater stability than the particles formed by KCl. Gellan microparticles coated with chitosan was possible to obtain only through a two-step process. In the first step, the gellan microgels were obtained through salt diffusion (KCl or CaCl2) and the particles obtained were subsequently coated with chitosan. The presence of the outer layer of chitosan exerted effect on the resistance of the particles to the simulated digestion process. All particles studied, with or without a coating of chitosan, resisted to the gastric digestion, however the chitosan coated particles showed a lower degree of fragmentation than the particles containing only gelan when subjected to the enteric digestion step. Therefore the results obtained showed that the microgels formed by interaction between two oppositely charged polymers improved the efficiency of particles as wall material, showing a great potential as bioactive compounds carrier / Mestrado / Engenharia de Alimentos / Mestre em Engenharia de Alimentos

[pt] Microcáspulas são comumente utilizadas como veículos para a entrega de ativos em locais de interesse. As cápsulas protegem seu conteúdo interno, e são capazes de liberá-los de forma controlada. Além de ser muito utilizada na indústria farmacêutica, alimentícia e cosmética, elas também são uma solução viável na medicina e na indústria de petróleo para se replicarem como células no corpo ou otimizar a recuperação de óleo, respectivamente. No entanto, a utilização de microcápsulas implica em usar uma casca que, devido a urgência pela sustentabilidade, precisa mais do que nunca ser uma substância biodegradável. Neste trabalho, apresentamos um método de liberação controlada de ativos protegidos pelo bio-polímero de goma de gelana utilizando o gatilho de temperatura como ativador da destruição da cápsula. O estudo mostra a diferença que as propriedades físicas das cápsulas causam no tempo de entrega do seu conteúdo interno e como a liberação se comporta com o aumento da taxa de calor envolvida no processo. O controle das propriedades foi realizado através da produção de microcápsulas por microfluídica ao qual os diâmetros variaram entre 190 e 510 micrômetros enquanto as espessuras variaram entre 4 a 50 micrômetros. O estudo mostra que, além do tamanho, o material da casca (gelana), influencia o comportamento de liberação, a partir de certo limite de relação de espessura-diâmetro. Além disso, outro ponto importante é como a natureza da gelana afeta essa liberação visto que os resultados mostram que, quando a gelana está em sua forma desacilada (low-acyl) ela é mais resistente à mudanças, porém quando sua forma natural acilada (high-acyl) é adicionada à cadeia polimérica da mistura, a composição torna-se mais sensível ao gatilho até um certo limite de razão espessura-diâmetro, alterando o comportamento da degradação e a entrega é atrasada. Os resultados indicam que uma das possibilidades de aplicação de microcápsulas de gelana é o processo de recuperação de óleo, pois sua casca é resistente e estável até altas temperaturas, dessa forma servem como agente trasportador até entrar em contato com o óleo à temperatura de poço, liberando seu conteúdo. / [en] Microcapsules are commonly used as vehicles for on-demand delivery of active contents. The capsule protects the internal content from interference of the external environment and deliver it in a controlled manner. In addition to being widely used in the pharmaceutical, food and cosmetic industries, microcapsules can be also a viable solution in medicine and in the petroleum industry to replicate themselves as cells in the body or optimize oil recovery, respectively. However, the use of a microcapsule implies the use of a shell that, due to the urge for sustainability, needs more than ever to be a biodegradable substance.. In this work, we present a method of controlled release of actives protected by a biodegradable gellan-based microcapsule using temperature as the trigger for its destruction. The study shows the effect of physical properties of the capsules in the delivery time of their internal content and how the release behaves with the increase of the heat rate involved in the process. Microcapsules were produced with flow-focusing microfluidic devices with diameters variying between 190 and 510 micrometers while the shell thicknesses varied between 4 and 50 micrometers. The study shows that, in addition to the size, the shell material influences the release behavior. In addition, another important point is how the gellan gum nature affects the thermal trigger event, since the results show that when gellan is in its deacylated form (low-acyl) it is more resistant to changes, but when its natural form (high-acyl) is added to the chain, it becomes more sensitive to the trigger mechanism until a thickness-diameter ratio threshold, where the degradation behavior changes and the delivery is delayed. The results of this work indicate that one of the possibilities for the application of gellan microcapsules is in the oil recovery process, since its shell is resistant and stable until reaching high temperatures, thus acting as a transport agent until it comes into contact with the oil at well temperature, releasing its contents.

No description available.

This master´s thesis deals with the study on mechanical and transport properties of hybrid hydrogel systems. Considering applications of hydrogels, especially in chemical industry, pharmacy, or eventually medical applications, for the study gellan and alginate-based hydrogels were selected. In order to compare individual characteristics physical and hybrid hydrogels were prepared. Gellan hydrogels were prepared in deionization aqua solution, calcium chloride dihydrate and tween 80 solution. Alginate hydrogels were prepared in calcium chloride dihydrate solution as well, and polyacrylamide with N,N´–methylenbisacrylamide. For the study of mechanical properties moisture analyser and rheology measurements were selected. Transport properties were studied using the diffusion experiments combined with UV-VIS spectroscopic detection. Concluding of this thesis is summarization of measured values, which provides comprehensive review of the problematics. It was discovered that the conveniently selected concentrations of structural components of hydrogel matrix and the additives can influence both the mechanical as well as the transport properties of studied hydrogels.

No description available.

O presente trabalho apresenta a preparação e caracterização de eletrólitos poliméricos nanocompósitos (NPEs - Nanocomposite Polymer Electrolytes) obtidos a partir da argila montmorilonita e goma gelana para aplicação em janelas eletrocrômicas. Para verificar a influência de argila nas propriedades físicas e químicas de nanocompósitos, incialmente foram preparadas membranas a base de goma gelana dos tipos low acyl (CGLA) ou high acyl (CGHA) contendo etilenoglicol ou glicerol como plastificantes e quantidades diferentes de LiClO4 (perclorato de lítio) como doador de cátions Li+. A caracterização por espectroscopia de impedância eletroquímica revelou que o eletrólito de goma gelana tipo low acyl (CGLA), com glicerol como plastificante e 0,40 g de LiClO4 (GGLA-G40) apresentava a condutividade iônica mais elevada entre as amostras, cujos valores ficaram entre 2,14 x 10-6 S/cm a 30 °C e 3,10 x 10-4 S/cm a 80°C. Ela foi usada para a preparação de nanocompósitos através de adição de quantidades diferentes de argila montmorilonita liofilizada Na+SYN-1 (synthetic mica-montmorillonite). O eletrólito com a melhor condutividade de 1,86 x 10-5 S/cm a 30°C e 3,74 x 10-4 S/cm à temperatura de 80°C continha 0,10 g de argila Na+SYN-1 (GG-MMT10). Essa mesma membrana apresentou uma transmitância entre 23% e 42% na faixa do visível, além de refletância no UV de 22% e 13% no visível. O difratograma de raios-X mostrou que os nanocompósitos formaram uma estrutura predominantemente intercalada e intercalada-floculada. Os termogramas revelaram que a estabilidade térmica dos eletrólitos não sofreu praticamente quase nenhuma alteração com a incorporação de argila. A morfologia microscópica apontou uma superfície não homogênea. Por fim, os ECDs transmissivos de configuração vidro/ITO/PB/eletrólito de goma gelana-Na+SYN-1/CeO2-TiO2/ITO/vidro montados usando o nanocompósito GG-MMT10 exibiram uma variação de transmitância no visível de 4%, indicando que esse material não apresenta benefícios em aplicações envolvendo janelas eletrocrômicas. / This work presents the preparation and characterization of nanocomposite polymer electrolytes (NPEs) obtained from montmorillonite clay and gellan gum for application in electrochromic devices. Initially, we produced membranes by using low (CGLA) and high acyl (CGHA) gellan gum, ethylene glycol or glycerol as plasticizers and different amounts of LiClO4 as a Li+ donor. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy indicated that the sample with low acyl gellan gum (CGLA), glycerol as plasticizer and 0.40 g of LiClO4 (GGLA-G40) showed the highest conductivity of 2.14 x 10-6 S/cm at 30 °C and 3.10 x 10-4 S/cm at 80°C. This sample was used to obtain a NPE by addition of different amounts of lyophilized montmorillonite clay Na+SYN-1 (synthetic mica-montmorillonite). The sample with 0.10 g of Na+SYN-1 clay (GG -MMT10) showed the best conductivity of 1.86 x 10-5 S/cm at 30°C and 3.74 x 10-4 S/cm at 80°C. This membrane transmitted between 23% and 42% in the visible range (wavelength 400 nm to 800 nm), and had reflectance of 22% and 13% in the UV and Vis, respectively. The X-ray diffraction indicated that the nanocomposites formed a predominantly intercalated or intercalated-flocculated structure. The thermograms revealed that the thermal stability of the electrolytes does not change with the incorporation of clay, and the microscopic morphology indicated a non-homogeneous surface. Finally, the transmissive ECDs with glass/ITO/PB/gelan gum-Na+SYN-1 electrolyte/CeO2-TiO2/ITO/glass configuration, assembled using the sample GG-MMT10 exhibited a visible transmittance variation of 4%, indicating that this NPE is not suitable for electrochromic devices application.

Depuis la découverte des cheminées hydrothermales, de multiples travaux ont été menés afin d’en étudier la diversité microbienne. Les inventaires moléculaires réalisés ont ainsi mis en évidence une grande diversité d’espèces qui contraste avec la faible proportion (1 %) d’espèces isolées par approche culturale. Une nouvelle approche d’immobilisation cellulaire par inclusion dans une matrice de polymères (gellane et xanthane) a ainsi été développée pour permettre l’étude de ces communautés thermophiles anaérobies marines. Le système, basé sur la formation d’une émulsion entre une solution de polymères inoculée et de l’huile, permet le piégeage de cellules dans des billes de gel de 1 à 2 mm de diamètre. Les conditions optimales d’immobilisation ont été obtenues pour une émulsion réalisée à 80 °C sous agitation (150 tr/min) à partir d’une solution de gellane (2,5 %) et de xanthane (0,25 %) avec 12 g/L de NaCl et 4 g/L de citrate de sodium, bullée à l’azote et réduit au Na2S avant inoculation. Les billes ont montré une bonne résistance mécanique après 5 semaines d’incubation à des pH compris entre 5,4 et 8, des températures allant jusqu’à 90 °C et des concentrations en NaCl et soufre allant jusqu’à respectivement 80 et 5 g/L. Des cultures en batch de Thermosipho sp. AT1272 et Thermococcus kodakarensis KOD1 immobilisées ont permis d’obtenir des concentrations allant jusqu’à 107 cellules/g de billes et 108 cellules/mL de fraction liquide. Une culture en continu réalisée en bioréacteur gas-lift pendant 41 jours à partir d’une communauté synthétique immobilisée composée de 8 souches (hyper)thermophiles a démontré la capacité de l’immobilisation cellulaire à protéger les cellules face à un stress oxique et à les maintenir (3 des 8 souches) dans le bioréacteur jusqu’à ce que les conditions de culture soient propices à leur croissance. La réactivité de la communauté immobilisée face aux changements environnementaux (température) a également été démontrée. Enfin, la culture en continu réalisée pendant 64 jours d’un échantillon immobilisé de diffuseur du site Rainbow a permis la croissance de plusieurs espèces bactériennes et archéennes (Oceanithermus sp., Thermococcus sp.) dont une partie n’a été détectée que dans les billes (Sulfurimonas sp., Nitratifractor sp., Vibrio sp.) par clonage-séquençage. L’ensemble de ces résultats ont permis de valider l’utilisation d’un protocole d’immobilisation par inclusion dans une matrice de polymères pour l’étude des communautés hydrothermales, de leur diversité et de leur dynamique. / Since the discovery of hydrothermal vents, multiple studies have been conducted in order to study microbial diversity. Molecular inventories realized have thus demonstrated a great diversity of species that contrasts with the low proportion (1%) of species isolated by culture approach. A new cell immobilization approach by inclusion in a polymer matrix (gellan and xanthan) has been developed for the study of these thermophilic anaerobic marine communities. The system, based on the formation of an emulsion between an inoculated polymer solution and oil, allows the entrapment of cells in gel beads with a diameter between 1 and 2 mm. The optimal immobilization conditions were obtained for emulsion performed at 80 °C with stirring (150 rpm) with a polymer solution composed of gellan (2.5%) and xanthan (0.25%) with 12 g/L of NaCl and 4 g/L of sodium citrate, bubbled with nitrogen and reduced with Na2S before inoculation. The beads showed a good mechanical stability after a 5-week incubation at pH between 5.4 and 8, temperatures up to 90 °C and NaCl and sulfur concentrations up to respectively 80 and 5 g/L. Batch cultures of immobilized Thermosipho sp. AT1272 and Thermococcus kodakarensis KOD1 yielded concentrations up to 107 cells/g of beads and 108 cells/mL of liquid fraction. A continuous culture performed in a gas-lift bioreactor for 41 days of an immobilized synthetic community composed of 8 (hyper)thermophilic strains demonstrated the capacity of cell immobilization to protect cells from oxique stress and to maintain them (3 of 8 strains) in the bioreactor until having suitable culture conditions for their growth. The reactivity of the immobilized community to environmental change (temperature) was also demonstrated. Finally, the continuous culture performed for 64 days of an immobilized diffuser sample from Rainbow site allowed the growth of several bacterial and archaeal species (Oceanithermus sp., Thermococcus sp.), part of which was detected only in the beads (Sulfurimonas sp., Nitratifractor sp., Vibrio sp.) by cloning-sequencing. All these results have validated the use of an immobilization protocol by inclusion in a polymer matrix for the study of hydrothermal communities, of their diversity and their dynamics.

<p>Drug delivery to the nasal and ocular mucosa faces several obstacles. One of these is from the effective clearance mechanisms present in the nose and eye. Polymer gels with suitable rheological properties can facilitate the absorption of poorly absorbed drugs by increasing the contact time of the drug with the mucosa. This has been attributed to the rheological and mucoadhesive properties of the gel. The main objective of this thesis was to investigate the importance of these features for the anticipated in vivo contact time, here exemplified by the ocular and nasal routes of administration.</p><p>The in situ gelling polymer gellan gum was found to have a favourable rheological and in vivo performance. When administered in the nasal cavity of rats, a gel was formed that could remain at the site of administration for up to 4 hours. In addition, the epithelial uptake and transfer of a 3 kDa fluorescein dextran was higher than for a mannitol solution. Therefore, it was concluded that a gellan gum formulation should be a promising strategy for nasal drug delivery.</p><p>The potential mucoadhesive properties of a variety of polymer gels were investigated using a rheological method and by measuring the tensile force required to detach the gel from a mucosa. With both methods the rheological properties of the gel were a determining factor for the results obtained. The rheological method was found to have several limitations. One of these was that a positive response, interpreted as mucoadhesion, was only seen with weak gels. The tensile method could, in contrast, detect strengthening of the mucus only for strong gels. However, this method reflects the in vivo performance of the gel better than the rheological method.</p><p>Finally, dielectric spectroscopy was explored as a tool for investigating the likelihood of intimate surface contact between the gel and the mucus layer. This novel approach involved determining the ease with which a charged particle can pass the gel-mucus interface layer, and may enable the study of the events at the interface closer to the molecular level, than is possible with the rheological and tensile strength methods.</p>

Drug delivery to the nasal and ocular mucosa faces several obstacles. One of these is from the effective clearance mechanisms present in the nose and eye. Polymer gels with suitable rheological properties can facilitate the absorption of poorly absorbed drugs by increasing the contact time of the drug with the mucosa. This has been attributed to the rheological and mucoadhesive properties of the gel. The main objective of this thesis was to investigate the importance of these features for the anticipated in vivo contact time, here exemplified by the ocular and nasal routes of administration. The in situ gelling polymer gellan gum was found to have a favourable rheological and in vivo performance. When administered in the nasal cavity of rats, a gel was formed that could remain at the site of administration for up to 4 hours. In addition, the epithelial uptake and transfer of a 3 kDa fluorescein dextran was higher than for a mannitol solution. Therefore, it was concluded that a gellan gum formulation should be a promising strategy for nasal drug delivery. The potential mucoadhesive properties of a variety of polymer gels were investigated using a rheological method and by measuring the tensile force required to detach the gel from a mucosa. With both methods the rheological properties of the gel were a determining factor for the results obtained. The rheological method was found to have several limitations. One of these was that a positive response, interpreted as mucoadhesion, was only seen with weak gels. The tensile method could, in contrast, detect strengthening of the mucus only for strong gels. However, this method reflects the in vivo performance of the gel better than the rheological method. Finally, dielectric spectroscopy was explored as a tool for investigating the likelihood of intimate surface contact between the gel and the mucus layer. This novel approach involved determining the ease with which a charged particle can pass the gel-mucus interface layer, and may enable the study of the events at the interface closer to the molecular level, than is possible with the rheological and tensile strength methods.