Table 1: Some of the factors affecting the encapsulation process of drugs into alginate beads.

Factor Drug Effect Reference Related with the formulation Gliclazide Alginate concentration + EE + diameter −porosity [7] −release rate + swelling BSA + EE [5, 8] Glucose Volume of the alginate solution Gliclazide −diameter [7] Divalent cation concentration BSA −EE [5, 8, 9] VEGF Glucose Crosslinker/alginate ratio Neutral (xanthan gums, ethylcellulose, PVA) Diclofenac sodium + EE [10, 11] + swelling Cationic (chitosan, poli-L-lysine) Proteins Oligonucleotides + EE [3, 5, 12] Waxy compounds (Compritol 888 ATO, Precirol ATO 5, Gelucires, glyceryl palmitostearate, magnesium aluminum silicate) Tamsulosin, diclofenac sodium + EE −release rate [13–16] Anionic (CMC, Eudragit L100, dextran sulphate) and cationic Insulin +EE + diameter −release rate Surfactant presence Gliclazide −diameter [7] + EE Related with the process Needle size BSA −diameter [5] Coaxial air volume BSA −diameter [5] Drying process BSA [5] Stirring rate Gliclazide −EE [7] −diameter