Multifunctional Nanocarriers for Lung Drug Delivery

Abstract

Nanocarriers have been increasingly proposed for lung drug delivery applications. The strategy of combining the intrinsic and more general advantages of the nanostructures with specificities that improve the therapeutic outcomes of particular clinical situations is frequent. These include the surface engineering of the carriers by means of altering the material structure (i.e., chemical modifications), the addition of specific ligands so that predefined targets are reached, or even the tuning of the carrier properties to respond to specific stimuli. The devised strategies are mainly directed at three distinct areas of lung drug delivery, encompassing the delivery of proteins and protein-based materials, either for local or systemic application, the delivery of antibiotics, and the delivery of anticancer drugs—the latter two comprising local delivery approaches. This review addresses the applications of nanocarriers aimed at lung drug delivery of active biological and pharmaceutical ingredients, focusing with particular interest on nanocarriers that exhibit multifunctional properties. A final section addresses the expectations regarding the future use of nanocarriers in the area.

Encapsulation of Oleuropein in Nanostructured Lipid Carriers: Biocompatibility and Antioxidant Efficacy in Lung Epithelial Cells

“…Interestingly, NLCs were shown to enhance and maintain the OLE protection effect against oxidative stress in lung cancer and cystic fibrosis cells, respectively, and thus, they could hold great promise for transporting this natural polyphenol to the lung epithelial cells. Nonetheless, further formulation studies should be conducted to obtain an adequate final formulation for pulmonary administration of NLC-OLE50 (i.e., dry powder for inhalation) [90][91][92].…”

Can Nanotechnology and Materials Science Help the Fight against SARS-CoV-2?

“…In this communication, we do not cover the diagnostics and treatment outcomes, although we certainly quote the considerable perspectives in (i) designing sensors for developing quick-response COVID-19 tests [85], and (ii) developing novel nanomedicines or theranostic tools [86]. In the future, we could also envisage the development of nanomedicines combining biodegradable nanocarriers [87,88] and one of the aforementioned (nano)antiviral agents, for possible aerosolization in the lung of patients under ventilation. This would allow for a much higher local concentration, i.e., a better efficiency, while limiting the penetration in the bloodstream and thus the side effects.…”

Developing inhaled protein therapeutics for lung diseases

“…This would enhance efficacy while averting peaks in local drug concentrations that could cause pulmonary toxicity [ 90 ]. Proteins, including insulin, calcitonin, and IgG, have already been loaded into various carriers such as microparticles, liposomes, and solid lipid nanoparticles [ 90 , 91 ]. Indeed, Afrezza® uses Technosphere® technology, in which fumaryl diketopiperazine (FDKP), an excipient added into the formulation, self-assembles into microspheres, entrapping the insulin.…”