The rise of biopharmaceuticals and the growing interest towards patient-centricity has paved the way for some fascinating innovations in drug delivery. As a continuation to our previously published article on drug innovations, this piece explores some innovative concepts in drug-delivery technologies. We will discuss the use of a biomimetic micromotor system to deliver oral vaccine, ionic liquids for oral insulin delivery, and some novel contraceptive systems.
Magnesium Particles as Tiny Motors to Deliver Oral Vaccine
Vaccines are one of the most important and effective means of preventing infectious diseases; to facilitate vaccination, highly potent formulations that are easy to administer are required.
Researchers at the University of California San Diego are investigating whether magnesium particles in the form of tiny motors can be used to deliver an oral vaccine against the bacterial pathogen Staphylococcus aureus.
The novel approach comprises a biomimetic self-propelling micromotor formulation whose propulsion is facilitated by a magnesium-based core. A biomimetic cell membrane coating is used to detain and neutralize a toxic antigenic payload.
The magnesium microparticles are coated with red blood cell membranes and a layer of chitosan. The red blood cell membranes display the Staphylococcal α-toxin, while chitosan is used to adhere to the intestinal mucus. An enteric coating is added to prevent the dissolution or disintegration of the drug in the gastric environment.
When the formulation was administered orally to mice, the micromotors safely traveled through the stomach and the dissolution of the enteric coating activated the motors.
Retention and uptake of the antigenic material in the small intestine in vivo was confirmed by imaging of mice. The micromotors also stimulated the production of about ten times more IgA antibodies against the Staphylococcal α-toxin than the static particles.
Ionic Liquids for Oral Insulin Delivery
Developing an oral delivery method for insulin has been a matter of much research. The oral route is reported to more closely mimic physiological insulin delivery and may prove to be the most patient-friendly way of taking insulin. However, inactivation by proteolytic enzymes in the gastrointestinal tract and low permeability through the intestinal membrane due to larger size and hydrophobicity of insulin are possible challenges that restrict the development of an oral insulin formulation.
Researchers at the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) have developed an oral delivery method that could revolutionize the way diabetes is managed. In this new approach, insulin is carried in an ionic liquid comprised of choline and geranic acid. The ionic liquid is then put inside a capsule, which is covered with enteric coating.
The ionic liquid carrying insulin is released when the formulation reaches a more alkaline environment in the small intestine; the enteric coating prevents the degradation by gastric acids in the stomach. Apart from this, the novel formulation is also able to successfully pave through the layer of mucus lining the intestine and the tight cell junctions of the intestine wall, through which large-molecule drugs such as insulin cannot easily pass.
The formulation is reported to be biocompatible and easy to manufacture; it can also be stored for up to two months at room temperature without degrading. Further, the formulation is prepared in a one-step process, which may help in easy scale-up.
The researchers are planning further animal tests as well as long-term toxicological and bioavailability studies to advance the development of this novel approach further.
N4 Pharma’s Nuvec - A non-viral adjuvant delivery system for vaccines and cancer treatments
N4 Pharma is developing a non-viral adjuvant delivery system for vaccines and cancer treatments. The novel delivery system termed “Nuvec” is based on silica nanoparticles with differentiated physical and structural properties specifically adapted to carry mRNA – pDNA and other therapeutic proteins.
The silica nanoparticles have unique irregular spikey surface structures (hollow silica spheres covered in thin silica structures) that are coupled with polyethyleneimine. Polyethyleneimine traps and protects the looped structure of nucleic ...
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