Routine exposure to inorganic nanoparticles (NPs) that are incorporated into consumer products such as foods/drinks, packaging materials, pharmaceuticals, and personal care products (e.g. cosmetics, sunscreens, shampoos) occurs on a daily basis. The standard everyday use of these products facilitates interactions between the incorporated inorganic NPs, mammalian tissues (e.g. skin, gastrointestinal tract, oral cavity), and the community of microbes that resides on these tissues. Changes to the microbiome have been linked to the initiation/ progression of many diseases and there is a growing interest focused on understanding how inorganic NPs can initiate these changes. As these mechanisms are revealed and defined, it may be possible to rationally design microbiotamodulating therapies based on inorganic NPs. In this article, we will: (i) provide a background on inorganic NPs that are commonly found in consumer products such as those that incorporate titanium, zinc, silver, silica, or iron, (ii) discuss how NP properties, microbiota composition, and the physiological microenvironment can mediate the effects that inorganic NPs have on the microbiota, and (iii) highlight opportunities for inorganic NP therapies that are designed to interact with, and navigate, the microbiome.
There is increasing interest in the use of inhaled aerosol drug therapy for the treatment of tuberculosis (TB). A number of methods of preparation of particles have been employed including spray drying, solvent evaporation, emulsion and phospholipid methods to create microparticles, macroaggregated nanoparticles, solid lipid nanoparticles and liposomes. Each of these methods involves the use of different proportions of additives to aid in the particle formation or to achieve important physico-chemical properties such as ease of dispersion. While these approaches all have merit their practical value is limited by constraints on dose and means of delivery as an aerosol in order to achieve a therapeutic effect. A review of a number of approaches is presented and placed in the context of the need for effective aerosol delivery systems for the treatment of TB as a guide to selection of appropriate excipients, processes and delivery strategies to support product development activities.
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