Beyond Solid-State Drugs: Liquid-State Pharmaceutical Re-Engineering—from Molecular Design to Delivery Performance
A special issue of International Journal of Molecular Sciences (ISSN 1422-0067). This special issue belongs to the section "Molecular Pharmacology".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 July 2026 | Viewed by 122
Special Issue Editor
Interests: liquid-state biological compounds; liquid co-crystals; active pharmaceutical ingredients; drug delivery systems; transdermal delivery; supported ionic liquid phases; controlled release
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Pharmaceutical development has long relied on solid-state active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs); however, this paradigm often limits drug performance due to poor solubility, polymorphism, crystallization-driven instability, limited permeability, and variable bioavailability. These challenges are particularly pronounced for non-oral delivery routes and for patient populations requiring consistent, predictable dosing. Consequently, alternative strategies that move beyond conventional solid-state design are increasingly needed.
This Special Issue, “Beyond Solid-State Drugs: Liquid-State Pharmaceutical Re-Engineering—from Molecular Design to Delivery Performance,” positions liquid-state transformation as a purposeful pharmaceutical design strategy rather than a formulation afterthought. By converting APIs into liquid forms (such as ionic liquids, deep eutectic systems, liquid salts, or hybrid ionic and hydrogen-bonded assemblies), crystal lattice constraints can be eliminated, enabling tunable physicochemical properties and enhanced functional performance. These systems offer new opportunities to improve solubility, stability, permeability, and formulation versatility while enabling more predictable drug delivery.
The scope of this Special Issue spans the design, synthesis, characterization, and application of liquid-state pharmaceutical systems, with an emphasis on structure–property–performance relationships and mechanistic understanding. We welcome original research articles, reviews, and perspectives showing clear potential for improved delivery outcomes across non-oral platforms, including transdermal, topical, pulmonary, buccal, and emerging routes. By emphasizing performance-driven design and translational relevance, this Special Issue aims to establish liquid-state re-engineering as a unifying framework for next-generation pharmaceutical development beyond traditional solid-state drug design.
This Special Issue’s topics of interest include, but are not limited to the following:·
- Liquid-state pharmaceutical design and re-engineering;
- Solid-to-liquid transformation of active pharmaceutical ingredients;
- Active pharmaceutical ingredient ionic liquids (API-ILs);
- Deep eutectic solvents (DESs) and therapeutic eutectic systems;
- Liquid salts, co-amorphous, and hybrid liquid pharmaceutical systems;
- Modulation of physicochemical properties (solubility, stability, viscosity, polarity, permeability);
- Structure–property–performance relationships in liquid-state pharmaceuticals;
- Design and synthesis of ionic and hydrogen-bonded drug systems;
- Analytical and spectroscopic characterization of liquid pharmaceutical materials;
- Transdermal, topical, pulmonary, buccal, and other non-oral drug delivery platforms;
- In vitro and in vivo evaluation of liquid-state drug delivery systems;
- Formulation strategies enabling enhanced bioavailability and controlled delivery;
- Regulatory, scalability, and translational considerations for liquid pharmaceuticals.
Interdisciplinary contributions spanning chemistry, materials science, pharmaceutical sciences, and biomedical engineering are particularly encouraged.
Best Regards,
Dr. O. Andreea Cojocaru
Guest Editor
Manuscript Submission Information
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Keywords
- liquid-state pharmaceuticals
- pharmaceutical re-engineering
- active pharmaceutical ingredient ionic liquids (API-ILs)
- deep eutectic and ionic systems
- solid-to-liquid drug transformation
- physicochemical property modulation
- structure–property–performance relationships
- non-oral drug delivery
- molecular design of pharmaceutical materials
- drug solubility enhancement
- permeability and drug delivery
- solid-to-liquid transformation
- transdermal delivery
- pharmaceutical material design
- ionic and hydrogen-bonded pharmaceutical systems
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