Nano-and Microfabrication Techniques in Drug Delivery – Part 1

Nano-and Microfabrication Techniques in Drug Delivery

See the new book, edited by Dimitrios Lamprou. It brings together technical, clinical, regulatory and industrial perspectives. It provides future prospective and includes the potential clinical applications of nano/microfabrication technologies. 

Description: New materials and manufacturing techniques are evolving with the potential to address the challenges associated with the manufacture of medicinal products that will teach new tricks to old drugs. Nano- and microfabrication techniques include manufacturing methods such as additive manufacturing, lithography, micro moulding, spray drying, and lab-on-a-chip, among many others. The increasing resolution of new techniques allows researchers to produce objects with micrometric resolutions. The book follows a consecutive order, beginning with a background in the current field and limitations in the manufacturing of different pharmaceutical products, moving on to the classification of each method by providing recent examples, and future prospective on a variety of traditional and new nanoand microfabrication techniques. The book focuses on the materials used to prepare these systems and their biocompatibility, including applied topics such as clinical applications and regulatory aspects, offering the reader a holistic view of this rapidly growing field.

Chapter 1

Conducting Polymers as Drug Release Systems

Conducting polymers, also known as electroactive polymers and intrinsically conducting polymers (ICPs), are materials that combine the conductivity associated with metals with the processability of plastics. Examples include polypyrrole, polythiophene, polyaniline and poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene). This chapter introduces the field of ICPs and reviews examples from recent literature concerning their use in drug delivery systems, which generally fall into five main categories, where the ICP is a simple film (typically deposited electrochemically); part of a composite material; included in nanocomposite materials; in the form of nanoparticles; and in the form of a hydrogel/conducting hydrogel. The switchable nature of ICPs, while providing conductivity and biocompatibility, puts these materials in a unique position in the field of drug delivery. The review period is from 2017 to the present (early–2022).

See the chapter

Smith, J.R. (2023). Conducting Polymers as Drug Release Systems. In: Lamprou, D. (eds) Nano- and Microfabrication Techniques in Drug Delivery . Advanced Clinical Pharmacy – Research, Development and Practical Applications, vol 2. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-26908-0_1

Chapter 2

Electrospinning for Drug Delivery Applications

Electrospun nanofibers have gained importance in drug delivery applications thanks to their diverse properties such as biocompatibility, biodegradability, adequate mechanical properties, and high surface area, among others. Drug delivery systems are getting crucial to avoid or diminish secondary effects and improve the targeting of the administered drugs incrementing its effectivity. Hence, the objective of this book chapter is to discuss the current reported electrospun nanofibers that were proposed as drug carriers; moreover description of properties, polymers used, pharmaceutical drugs loaded, and targeted tissues are discussed. From all administration routes, oral administration is the most studied followed by transdermal, due to the nature of the electrospun fibers to degrade and create a tridimensional scaffold with malleable properties. On the other hand, fast dissolving administration is the most recommended strategy for the use of nanofibers, where more evident therapeutics benefits can be appreciated. Still studies of the effectivity of the nanofibers as drug carriers and comparison with traditional administration are needed.

See the chapter

Villarreal-Gómez, L.J., Pérez-González, G.L. (2023). Electrospinning for Drug Delivery Applications. In: Lamprou, D. (eds) Nano- and Microfabrication Techniques in Drug Delivery . Advanced Clinical Pharmacy – Research, Development and Practical Applications, vol 2. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-26908-0_2

Chapter 3

Melt Electrospinning and Electrowriting for Pharmaceutical and Biomedical Applications

Melt electrospinning and electrowriting are eco-friendly and solvent-free processes able to produce fibrous membranes for different industrial applications. These processes have clear advantages over conventional solution electrospinning but have also different challenges that still need to be solved. This chapter starts with a brief presentation of melt electrospinning techniques with the explanation of essential parameters that allow to control the process. Attention is also given to the effect caused by the incorporation of additives together with the benefits caused by blending and composite preparations. Nevertheless, the main goal corresponds to the explanation and discussion of scaffolds with interest in the biomedical/pharmaceutical fields, covering both tissue regeneration and drug delivery applications.

See the chapter

De Lama-Odría, M., del Valle, L.J., Puiggalí, J. (2023). Melt Electrospinning and Electrowriting for Pharmaceutical and Biomedical Applications. In: Lamprou, D. (eds) Nano- and Microfabrication Techniques in Drug Delivery . Advanced Clinical Pharmacy – Research, Development and Practical Applications, vol 2. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-26908-0_3

Chapter 4

Pharmaceutical Spray Drying

Spray drying is a continuous manufacturing process that requires the use of a small number of excipients and offers great flexibility to formulation scientists due to the easy operation and scale-up. Although the direct interest of its application is for solubility improvement, other areas such as drug compatibility, especially for formulations with high drug dosing and controlled release delivery, can equally benefit by optimizing the co-spray-dried composition and operation variables. Application for solidification of biological agents is another attractive opportunity which is unfortunately slow-progressing due to the lack of understanding of physicochemical stability in the presence of excipients. Drug formulations as dry powders for inhalation are another important area for the application of spray drying which is not dealt with here. In this chapter, the basic principles of spray drying are presented followed by a critical presentation of cases where improvement of mechanical behaviour was achieved by co-processing with polymers. Next, cases where optimized drug/polymer/carbohydrate combinations succeeded in providing fine-tuned prolonged or delayed targeted delivery are presented. Finally, studies of co-spray drying aqueous dispersions with biologicals reporting in vitro release, maintenance of biological activity, and in vivo performance are discussed.

See the chapter

Partheniadis, I., Al-Zoubi, N., Nikolakakis, I. (2023). Pharmaceutical Spray Drying. In: Lamprou, D. (eds) Nano- and Microfabrication Techniques in Drug Delivery . Advanced Clinical Pharmacy – Research, Development and Practical Applications, vol 2. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-26908-0_4

Chapter 5

Vat Photopolymerisation Additive Manufacturing for Pharmaceutical Applications

Vat photopolymerisation three-dimensional (3D) printing is redefining manufacturing paradigms within the pharmaceutical and healthcare industries. Marked by its superb printing resolution and speed, this technology provides an advanced method for engineering patient-centred drug products and devices. In the future, it is foreseen that the combination of 3D printing with other digital health technologies could in fact give rise to a new healthcare model, involving transitioning from current treatment pathways towards personalised digital therapies. This chapter outlines the various vat photopolymerisation techniques, illustrating their unique applications for the fabrication of medicines and drug-laden devices. This is followed by a brief overview of the challenges and drawbacks associated with this printing system in context of its use within healthcare.

See the chapter

Awad, A., Xu, X., Ong, J.J., Goyanes, A., Basit, A.W. (2023). Vat Photopolymerisation Additive Manufacturing for Pharmaceutical Applications. In: Lamprou, D. (eds) Nano- and Microfabrication Techniques in Drug Delivery . Advanced Clinical Pharmacy – Research, Development and Practical Applications, vol 2. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-26908-0_5

See the full book here

Dimitrios Lamprou Nano- and Microfabrication Techniques in Drug Delivery, Recent Developments and Future Prospects, ISSN 2524-5325 ISSN 2524-5333 (electronic), Advanced Clinical Pharmacy – Research, Development and Practical Applications ISBN 978-3-031-26907-3 ISBN 978-3-031-26908-0 (eBook), https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-26908-0

There will be to addtional articles here soon with the remaining book chapter contents:

• See Part 2
• See Part 3