MEMBRANE WITH CONTROLLABLE PERMEABILITY FOR DRUGS

Membranes find application in medicine for the continuous delivery of drugs. The control of the delivered amount would be of great advantage . Therefore a composite membrane comprising a conductive polymer as an active separation layer is developed. By applying various potentials to the membrane system, a controlled permeability through the membrane is achieved. Depending on the redox state of the conducting polymer d ifferent rates of permeation for water soluble substances are observed . Dopamine, a neurotransmitter is chosen for testing this new composit e membrane. The amount of permeated dopamine is detected on-line with a thermospray mass spectrometer. Changes in the rate of permeation up to 40 % are attained.