Title:Challenges and Strategies in Developing Microneedle Patches for Transdermal Delivery of Protein and Peptide Therapeutics
Volume: 13
Issue: 7
Author(s): Fei Wu, Sixing Yang, Weien Yuan and Tuo Jin
Affiliation:
Keywords:
Microneedles, proteins, peptides, delivery, hydrogel, controlled release.
Abstract: The birth of microneedles, an array of needles sufficiently long to penetrate epidermis but small enough to do
not cause skin injury and pain feeling, has offered a highly promising solution for non-invasive delivery of protein and
peptide drugs, a long-cherished desire over eighty years. However, the attempts to develop clinically feasible microneedle
transdermal delivery methods encountered series of difficulties, for which a decade research efforts have yet to result in a
single product. Microneedles may be incorporated into devices as skin pre-treatment tools, skin microinjectors as well as
transdermal patches by their functions in drug delivery. They may also be categorized to insoluble solid microneedles,
hollow microneedles, soluble/degradable solid microneedles and phase-transition microneedles by their structure and
forming materials. This review article is aimed to update the progress and discuss the technical challenges raised in developing
protein/peptide loaded microneedle patches.
