Microneedle‐assisted transdermal delivery of nanoparticles: Recent insights and prospects

Abstract

Transdermal delivery of drugs offers an interesting alternative for the administration of molecules that present certain troubles when delivered by the oral route. It can produce systemic effects or perform a local action when the formulation exerts an optimal controlled drug release or a targeted delivery to the specific cell type or site. It also avoids several inconveniences of the oral administration such as the hepatic first pass effect, gastric pH-induced hydrolysis, drug malabsorption because of certain diseases or surgeries, and unpleasant organoleptic properties. Nanomedicine and microneedle array patches (MAPs) are two of the trendiest delivery systems applied to transdermal research nowadays. However, the skin is a protective barrier and nanoparticles (NPs) cannot pass through the intact stratum corneum. The association of NPs and MAPs (NPs@MAPs) work synergistically, since MAPs assist NPs to bypass the outer skin layers, and NPs contribute to the system providing controlled drug release and targeted delivery. Vaccination and tailored therapies have been proposed as fields where both NPs and MAPs have great potential due to inherent characteristics. MAPs conception and easy use could allow selfadministration and therefore facilitate mass vaccination campaigns in undeveloped areas with weak healthcare services. Additionally, nanomedicine is being explored as a platform to personalize therapies in such an important field as oncology. In this work we show recent insights that prove the benefits of NPs@MAPs association and analyze the prospects and the discrete interest of the industry in NPs@MAPs, evaluating different limiting steps that restricts NPs@MAPs translation to the clinical practice.

The state-of-the-art of atmospheric pressure plasma for transdermal drug delivery

“…Researchers continue to explore and develop various types of microneedle technologies to optimize drug delivery for a wide range of medical applications. Details about microneedles research can be found in the recent review papers [39][40][41][42].…”

Nanocomposite hydrogel microneedles: a theranostic toolbox for personalized medicine

“…NPs have excelled as drug delivery carriers by encapsulating small molecules, peptides, proteins, and nucleic acids, being more versatile and carrying higher payloads than conventional drug delivery systems. In cancer therapy, NPs may show a higher selectivity through either passive or active targeting mechanisms, which allow them to overcome some of the inherent limitations of conventional drugs by improving drug localization, enhancing drug solubility, and reducing toxic side effects through controlled release at the target site [ 67 , 68 ]. Encapsulation of drug-loaded NPs within a hydrogel matrix has been used to prevent rapid drug release, both locally and systemically.…”

Nanocarrier-Integrated Microneedles: Divulging the Potential of Novel Frontiers for Fostering the Management of Skin Ailments

“…The integration of NCs will embrace the potential to transfigure the TDD for the management of skin ailments owing to their synergistic effect, which helps to boost patient compliance and enhance therapeutic outcomes . Thus, the nanocarriers (NCs) can be incorporated within the MNs to enhance bioavailability, reduce side effects, sustain the systemic concentration of the drug, and deliver the required drug concentration at the targeted site . On the other hand, the MNs deliver the therapeutics by circumventing the SC in a minimally invasive way.…”