Nanosuspensions for the Improvement of Drug Bioavailability, 2nd Edition

A special issue of Pharmaceutics (ISSN 1999-4923). This special issue belongs to the section "Pharmaceutical Technology, Manufacturing and Devices".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 July 2023) | Viewed by 1326

Special Issue Editors

Department of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Cagliari, 09124 Cagliari, Italy
Interests: nanocrystals; transdermal delivery; brain delivery
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Department of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Cagliari, Cagliari, Italy
Interests: nanomedicine; lipid nanoparticles; RNA delivery; nanosuspensions; microfluidics
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Department of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Cagliari, 09124 Cagliari, Italy
Interests: liposomes; nanocrystals; dermal delivery
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Unit of Drug Sciences, Department of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Cagliari, 09124 Cagliari, Italy
Interests: nanosuspensions; electrospun nanofibers; cubosomes; phospholipid vesicles; pulmonary delivery; brain delivery
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Solubility is a critical property for all drugs, which need to be dissolved in biological fluids to be absorbed and interact with their molecular target(s). The majority of new chemical entities in discovery and development, and a number of approved compounds listed in classes II and IV of the Biopharmaceutical Classification System, are characterized by poor water solubility. The same issue is shared by several natural molecules. Low solubility often results in limited or erratic bioavailability, which might impose higher doses to achieve a pharmacological effect, increasing the risk of toxicity and the waste of material. The reduction in drug particle size below 1 µm generates nanocrystals, which in the last several decades have delivered the promise of increasing drug solubility and improving bioavailability. Nanocrystals can be dispersed in aqueous or non-aqueous media to produce nanosuspensions, stabilized by surfactants or polymers if necessary. Nanosuspensions, in addition to allowing high drug concentrations, have proved to be efficient in crossing numerous biological barriers, including the skin, the pulmonary epithelium, and the intestinal wall.

This Special Issue on “Nanosuspensions for the Improvement of Drug Bioavailability” will include original research and thematic reviews on any aspects related to the development of nanosuspensions.

Specifically, the Guest Editors welcome contributions focused on production processes and characterization methods, on the development of novel nanosuspensions, and on their assay in relevant in vitro/in vivo models. Expert opinions on clinical translation and speculative hypotheses on debated topics are also invited.

Prof. Dr. Francesco Lai
Dr. Michele Schlich
Dr. Rosa Pireddu
Dr. Luca Casula
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Keywords

  • nanosuspensions
  • nanocrystals
  • solubility
  • dissolution
  • bioavailability
  • nano-sizing
  • stabilizers

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

12 pages, 2399 KiB  
Article
Nanosuspension-Based Dissolvable Microneedle Arrays to Enhance Diclofenac Skin Delivery
by Luca Casula, Rosa Pireddu, Maria Cristina Cardia, Elena Pini, Donatella Valenti, Michele Schlich, Chiara Sinico, Salvatore Marceddu, Nina Dragićević, Anna Maria Fadda and Francesco Lai
Pharmaceutics 2023, 15(9), 2308; https://doi.org/10.3390/pharmaceutics15092308 - 13 Sep 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1056
Abstract
Applying a formulation on the skin represents a patient-acceptable and therapeutically effective way to administer drugs locally and systemically. However, the stratum corneum stands as an impermeable barrier that only allows a very limited number of drugs to be distributed in the underlying [...] Read more.
Applying a formulation on the skin represents a patient-acceptable and therapeutically effective way to administer drugs locally and systemically. However, the stratum corneum stands as an impermeable barrier that only allows a very limited number of drugs to be distributed in the underlying tissues, limiting the feasibility of this administration route. Microneedle arrays are minimally invasive platforms that allow the delivery of drugs within/across the skin through the temporary mechanical disruption of the stratum corneum. In this work, microneedle arrays were combined with nanosuspensions, a technology for solubility enhancement of water insoluble molecules, for the skin delivery of diclofenac. Nanosuspensions were prepared using a top-down method and loaded in the tips of 500 µm or 800 µm high microneedles. The quality of the combined platform was assessed using electron microscopy and spectroscopic and calorimetry techniques, demonstrating the ability to load high amounts of the hydrophobic drug and the compatibility between excipients. Lastly, the application of nanosuspension-loaded microneedles on the skin in vitro allowed the delivery of diclofenac within and across the stratum corneum, proving the potential of this combination to enhance skin delivery of scarcely soluble drugs. Full article
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