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The performance of nanocarriers for transmucosal drug delivery.
Journal article

The performance of nanocarriers for transmucosal drug delivery.

  • Csaba N Drug Formulation and Delivery Group, Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, ETH Zurich, Wolfgang-Pauli Str. 10, CH-8093 Zurich, Switzerland.
  • Garcia-Fuentes M
  • Alonso MJ
  • 2006-07-11
Published in:
  • Expert opinion on drug delivery. - 2006
Administration, Intranasal
Administration, Oral
Drug Carriers
Drug Delivery Systems
Humans
Mucous Membrane
Nanoparticles
Particle Size
Pharmaceutical Preparations
Solubility
English Most of the newly designed drug molecules are characterised by low solubility in aqueous medium, low permeability through biological membranes and/or an insufficient stability in the biological environment. Fundamental studies have provided proof-of-concept of the potential of particulate nanocarriers for overcoming these unsuitable properties. For example, it is known that polymeric nanosystems may enhance transmucosal transport of drugs with poor penetration capacities while preserving their biological activity. Moreover, in recent years it has become clear that through an appropriate selection of the nanosystem components it is possible to enhance its affinity for the mucosa and, hence, the residence time of the drug in contact with the absorptive epithelium. These properties, combined with a suitably tailored release profile can markedly increase the efficacy of pharmaceuticals. Overall, the properties that have been identified as critical for the performance of these delivery systems are particle size, surface charge and surface chemical composition. These properties are known to affect the physical and chemical stability of the nanoparticles in the biological environment as well as their ability to interact (unspecific bioadhesion, receptor-mediated interaction and so on) and, eventually, overcome biological barriers. The present article aims to critically review the latest advances in this area and to provide some insights into these complex issues. Thus, herein the most widely investigated transmucosal drug delivery nanosystems and their most promising applications are reported.
Language
  • English
Open access status
closed
Identifiers
Persistent URL
https://sonar.ch/global/documents/222392
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