Search for Articles:
Title / Keyword
Author / Affiliation / Email
Journal
Article Type
 
 
Advanced Search
 
Section
Special Issue
Volume
Issue
Number
Page
 
7.9
4.9
Journals
Pharmaceutics
Special Issues
Site-Specific Drug Delivery: Formulation Strategies and Regulatory Challenges
share announcement

Site-Specific Drug Delivery: Formulation Strategies and Regulatory Challenges

A special issue of Pharmaceutics (ISSN 1999-4923). This special issue belongs to the section "Drug Delivery and Controlled Release".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 March 2025) | Viewed by 8443

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Maria Begoña Delgado-Charro

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Life Sciences, University of Bath, Claverton Down, Bath BA2 7AY, UK
Interests: topical drug delivery; transdermal drug delivery; nail drug delivery; bioequivalence; regulatory science; onychomychosis
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Leila Bastos Leal

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Departamento de Ciências Farmacêuticas, Núcleo de Desenvolvimento Farmacêutico e Cosmético (NUDFAC), Universidade Federal de Pernambuco (UFPE), Recife 50740-521, PE, Brazil
Interests: bioequivalence; vasoconstrictor assay; topical drug delivery; new approach methodologies; pesticide exposition; regulatory science

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Site-specific, local drug delivery is valuable as drug exposure is optimized at the target site and minimized systemically, reducing risks for systemic drug interactions and side effects. Depending on the specific site targeted, parenteral, topical, oral, and mucosal drug delivery systems can be used, so a broad range of technologies, dosage forms, excipients, and drug development strategies are employed. Despite recent advances, methods to measure, simulate, and predict local bioavailability and bioequivalence and approaches to establish effective in vitro–in vivo correlations are less developed than for systemic drug delivery methods. In addition, regulatory guidelines regarding the development of these systems and their characterization, including quality tests and new approaches and methodologies, are not as comprehensive as drug developers might wish. This Special Issue aims to support the development of site-specific drug delivery systems by bringing together the latest innovations in the field and providing comprehensive and critical state-of-the-art reviews.

Prof. Dr. Maria Begoña Delgado-Charro
Prof. Dr. Leila Bastos Leal
Guest Editors

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

  • site-specific drug delivery
  • targeted drug delivery
  • topical drug delivery
  • mucosal drug delivery
  • parenteral drug delivery
  • ocular drug delivery
  • nail drug delivery
  • new methodologies

Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue

  • Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
  • Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
  • Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
  • External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
  • Reprint: MDPI Books provides the opportunity to republish successful Special Issues in book format, both online and in print.

Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (3 papers)

Download All Papers
Order results
Result details
Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

10 pages, 2173 KiB  
Article
Evaluation of Dutasteride-Loaded Liposomes and Transfersomes for Follicular-Targeting for Androgenic Alopecia Topical Treatment
by Jayanaraian F. M. Andrade, Breno N. Matos, Rafael V. Rocho, Geisa N. Barbalho, Marcilio Cunha-Filho, Guilherme M. Gelfuso and Taís Gratieri
Pharmaceutics 2024, 16(12), 1524; https://doi.org/10.3390/pharmaceutics16121524 - 27 Nov 2024
Viewed by 2135
Abstract
Background/Objectives: Although androgenic alopecia is the most prevalent among non-cicatricial alopecia, it still lacks an effective and safe treatment. Dutasteride (DUT) shows promising results in hair regrowth; however, oral DUT intake causes serious sexual adverse events. Hence, we produced liposomes with different bilayer [...] Read more.
Background/Objectives: Although androgenic alopecia is the most prevalent among non-cicatricial alopecia, it still lacks an effective and safe treatment. Dutasteride (DUT) shows promising results in hair regrowth; however, oral DUT intake causes serious sexual adverse events. Hence, we produced liposomes with different bilayer structures and evaluated the capability of such systems in increasing DUT accumulation in the hair follicles. Methods: In vitro skin penetration tests were performed with porcine ear skin, and the follicular targeting factor (Tf) was calculated as the ratio between DUT amount in HFs and DUT recovered from the sum of all skin layers. Results: While the stiffer DUT-loaded liposome was not able to target the hair follicles in 12 h (Tf = 0.15), a DUT-loaded liposome with an edge activator in its composition, i.e., transfersomes, promoted better control over DUT release and a higher Tf (0.32) (p < 0.005). Conclusions: Transfersomes present higher affinity with DUT providing a better controlled release; hence, they are a better option for DUT follicle targeting compared to liposomes. Further formulation optimizations are needed aiming to prolong such targeting effect. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Site-Specific Drug Delivery: Formulation Strategies and Regulatory Challenges)
►▼ Show Figures

Graphical abstract

19 pages, 4062 KiB  
Article
Molded Round Window Niche Implant as a Dexamethasone Delivery System in a Cochlear Implant-Trauma Animal Model
by Chunjiang Wei, Ziwen Gao, Robert Mau, Thomas Eickner, Gabor Jüttner, Nicklas Fiedler, Hermann Seitz, Thomas Lenarz and Verena Scheper
Pharmaceutics 2024, 16(9), 1236; https://doi.org/10.3390/pharmaceutics16091236 - 23 Sep 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 4153
Abstract
Background: Preserving residual hearing after cochlear implant (CI) surgery remains a crucial challenge. The application of dexamethasone (DEX) has been proven to positively affect residual hearing. To deliver DEX in a localized and controlled way, a round window niche implant (RNI), allowing drug [...] Read more.
Background: Preserving residual hearing after cochlear implant (CI) surgery remains a crucial challenge. The application of dexamethasone (DEX) has been proven to positively affect residual hearing. To deliver DEX in a localized and controlled way, a round window niche implant (RNI), allowing drug diffusion via the round window membrane into the cochlea, may be used. To prove this concept, an RNI for guinea pigs as a CI-trauma model was manufactured by molding and tested for its drug release in vitro and biological effects in vivo. Methods: The RNIs were molded using silicone containing 10% DEX. Release was analyzed over time using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Fourteen adult guinea pigs were randomly assigned to two groups (CI or CI + RNI group). All animals received a unilateral CI electrode insertion trauma followed by CI insertion. The CI + RNI group was additionally implanted with an RNI containing 10% DEX. Animals were followed up for 4 weeks. Acoustically evoked auditory brainstem response and impedance measurement, micro-computed tomography (µCT) imaging, and histology were performed for evaluation. Results: DEX was released for more than 250 days in vitro, with an initial burst followed by a slower release over time. Comparing the hearing threshold shift (from day 0 to day 28) of the CI and CI + RNI groups, significant differences were observed at 32 and 40 kHz. The impedance shift at basal contacts was lower in the CI + RNI group than in the CI group. Moreover, the fibrosis in the lower basal turn was reduced in the CI + RNI group in contrast to the CI group. Conclusions: The RNI containing 10% DEX has anti-inflammatory potential concerning fibrosis inhibition and has beneficial effects on hearing preservation at high frequencies. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Site-Specific Drug Delivery: Formulation Strategies and Regulatory Challenges)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

13 pages, 1958 KiB  
Article
Assessing α-Bisabolol as a Transmucosal Permeation Enhancer of Buccal Local Anesthetics
by Renê Oliveira do Couto, Douglas Vieira Thomaz, Maira Perez Ferreira Duarte, Renata Fonseca Vianna Lopez, Vinícius Pedrazzi, Osvaldo de Freitas and Gianluca Martino Tartaglia
Pharmaceutics 2024, 16(9), 1198; https://doi.org/10.3390/pharmaceutics16091198 - 12 Sep 2024
Viewed by 1521
Abstract
Needle-free buccal anesthesia improves dental treatment outcomes for both patients and dentists. In this study, we report on an assessment of the enhancement effects of α-bisabolol on the in vitro transmucosal permeation of prilocaine hydrochloride (PCl) and lidocaine hydrochloride (LCl) from needleless buccal [...] Read more.
Needle-free buccal anesthesia improves dental treatment outcomes for both patients and dentists. In this study, we report on an assessment of the enhancement effects of α-bisabolol on the in vitro transmucosal permeation of prilocaine hydrochloride (PCl) and lidocaine hydrochloride (LCl) from needleless buccal films. We also evaluated the mechanical properties of the film, which consisted of Methocel™ K100 LV as the film-forming polymer (3% m·m−1), PEG 400 as a cosolvent (15% m·m−1 based on drug loading), α-bisabolol (15 and 30% m·m−1 based on drug loading), and the drugs combined at a 1:1 ratio (15 mg·unit−1). The porcine esophageal epithelium was used as a membrane barrier, and artificial saliva was the release medium. After a 1 h experiment at 25 ± 2 °C, α-bisabolol significantly decreased, rather than enhanced, the permeation fluxes (five-fold), permeability coefficients (seven-fold), and retentions (two-fold) of both PCl and LCl through the epithelium, regardless of the concentration. Moreover, the resistance and flexibility of the films markedly decreased compared to those without α-bisabolol. Therefore, under the experimental conditions, using α-bisabolol as a buccal permeation enhancer for the hydrophilic local anesthetics PCl and LCl from buccal films is not feasible. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Site-Specific Drug Delivery: Formulation Strategies and Regulatory Challenges)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:
 
Displaying articles 1-3
Back to TopTop