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Pharmaceutics
Special Issues
Nanocrystals for Drug Delivery
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Nanocrystals for Drug Delivery

A special issue of Pharmaceutics (ISSN 1999-4923). This special issue belongs to the section "Nanomedicine and Nanotechnology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 August 2022) | Viewed by 11608

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Viviana Vergaro

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
National Research Council, CNR Nanotec - istituto di nanotecnologia, Via Monteroni, 73100 Lecce, Italy
Interests: drug delivery; nanoformulation; metal complex; polymers; drug–cells interactions; nanocrystals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The poor water solubility of bioactive compounds is a major challenge in the pharmaceutical industry. In recent decades, there has been an increasing amount of ongoing research on advances in synthesis procedures for uniform and high-quality nanocrystal preparation, as the latter are good candidates as a drug delivery platform for insoluble drugs. This Special Issue on “Nanocrystals for Drug Delivery” will publish research focused on such topics as designing and developing novel drug delivery systems, with a focus on their application to cancer diseases; short-term and long-term biocompatibility; and evaluation of their interaction with cells focusing on their trafficking and fate.

Regular research articles, short communications, and reviews on this topic are invited from research groups from all over the world to promote the dissemination of scientific knowledge through this open access journal. Researchers working in the field of nanocrystals and delivery systems and related disciplines are encouraged to publish their recent findings in this Special Issue of Pharmaceutics.

Dr. Viviana Vergaro
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Pharmaceutics is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • nanocrystals
  • drug delivery
  • biocompatibility
  • cancer diseases
  • cell interaction
  • trafficking

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

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17 pages, 1793 KiB  
Article
Evaluation of the Formulation Parameter-Dependent Redispersibility of API Nanoparticles from Fluid Bed Granules
by Martin Wewers, Jan Henrik Finke, Stefan Czyz, Bernard Van Eerdenbrugh, Edgar John, Guido Büch, Michael Juhnke, Heike Bunjes and Arno Kwade
Pharmaceutics 2022, 14(8), 1688; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/pharmaceutics14081688 - 13 Aug 2022
Viewed by 2305
Abstract
The production of nanosuspensions of poorly soluble active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) is a popular technique to counteract challenges regarding bioavailability of such active substances. A subsequent drying of the nanosuspensions is advantageous to improve the long-term stability and the further processing into solid [...] Read more.
The production of nanosuspensions of poorly soluble active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) is a popular technique to counteract challenges regarding bioavailability of such active substances. A subsequent drying of the nanosuspensions is advantageous to improve the long-term stability and the further processing into solid oral dosage forms. However, associated drying operations are critical, especially with regard to nanoparticle growth, loss in redispersibility and associated compromised bioavailability. This work extends a previous study regarding the applicability of an API (itraconazole) nanosuspension as a granulation liquid in a fluidized bed process with focus on the influence of applied formulation parameters on the structure of obtained nanoparticle-loaded granules and their nanoparticle redispersibility. Generally, a higher dissolution rate of the carrier material (glass beads, lactose, mannitol or sucrose) and a higher content of a matrix former/hydrophilic polymer (PVP/VA or HPMC) in the granulation liquid resulted in the formation of coarser and more porous granules with improved nanoparticle redispersibility. HPMC was found to have advantages as a polymer compared with PVP/VA. In general, a better redispersibility of the nanoparticles from the granules could be associated with better dispersion of the API nanoparticles at the surface of the granules as deduced from the thickness of nanoparticle-loaded layers around the granules. The layer thickness on granules was assessed by means of confocal Raman microscopy. Finally, the dispersion of the nanoparticles in the granule layers was exemplarily described by calculation of theoretical mean nanoparticle distances in the granule layers and was correlated with data obtained from redispersibility studies. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nanocrystals for Drug Delivery)
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Review

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23 pages, 1597 KiB  
Review
Drug Nanocrystals for Active Tumor-Targeted Drug Delivery
by Linwei Lu, Qianzhu Xu, Jun Wang, Sunyi Wu, Zimiao Luo and Weiyue Lu
Pharmaceutics 2022, 14(4), 797; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/pharmaceutics14040797 - 06 Apr 2022
Cited by 13 | Viewed by 3666
Abstract
Drug nanocrystals, which are comprised of active pharmaceutical ingredients and only a small amount of essential stabilizers, have the ability to improve the solubility, dissolution and bioavailability of poorly water-soluble drugs; in turn, drug nanocrystal technology can be utilized to develop novel formulations [...] Read more.
Drug nanocrystals, which are comprised of active pharmaceutical ingredients and only a small amount of essential stabilizers, have the ability to improve the solubility, dissolution and bioavailability of poorly water-soluble drugs; in turn, drug nanocrystal technology can be utilized to develop novel formulations of chemotherapeutic drugs. Compared with passive targeting strategy, active tumor-targeted drug delivery, typically enabled by specific targeting ligands or molecules modified onto the surface of nanomedicines, circumvents the weak and heterogeneous enhanced permeability and retention (EPR) effect in human tumors and overcomes the disadvantages of nonspecific drug distribution, high administration dosage and undesired side effects, thereby contributing to improving the efficacy and safety of conventional nanomedicines for chemotherapy. Continuous efforts have been made in the development of active tumor-targeted drug nanocrystals delivery systems in recent years, most of which are encouraging and also enlightening for further investigation and clinical translation. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nanocrystals for Drug Delivery)
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39 pages, 1463 KiB  
Review
Drug Nanocrystals: Focus on Brain Delivery from Therapeutic to Diagnostic Applications
by Elide Zingale, Angela Bonaccorso, Claudia Carbone, Teresa Musumeci and Rosario Pignatello
Pharmaceutics 2022, 14(4), 691; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/pharmaceutics14040691 - 23 Mar 2022
Cited by 10 | Viewed by 4110
Abstract
The development of new drugs is often hindered by low solubility in water, a problem common to nearly 90% of natural and/or synthetic molecules in the discovery pipeline. Nanocrystalline drug technology involves the reduction in the bulk particle size down to the nanosize [...] Read more.
The development of new drugs is often hindered by low solubility in water, a problem common to nearly 90% of natural and/or synthetic molecules in the discovery pipeline. Nanocrystalline drug technology involves the reduction in the bulk particle size down to the nanosize range, thus modifying its physico-chemical properties with beneficial effects on drug bioavailability. Nanocrystals (NCs) are carrier-free drug particles surrounded by a stabilizer and suspended in an aqueous medium. Due to high drug loading, NCs maintain a potent therapeutic concentration to produce desirable pharmacological action, particularly useful in the treatment of central nervous system (CNS) diseases. In addition to the therapeutic purpose, NC technology can be applied for diagnostic scope. This review aims to provide an overview of NC application by different administration routes, especially focusing on brain targeting, and with a particular attention to therapeutic and diagnostic fields. NC therapeutic applications are analyzed for the most common CNS pathologies (i.e., Parkinson’s disease, psychosis, Alzheimer’s disease, etc.). Recently, a growing interest has emerged from the use of colloidal fluorescent NCs for brain diagnostics. Therefore, the use of NCs in the imaging of brain vessels and tumor cells is also discussed. Finally, the clinical effectiveness of NCs is leading to an increasing number of FDA-approved products, among which the NCs approved for neurological disorders have increased. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nanocrystals for Drug Delivery)
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