Nasal Drug delivery in Pharmaceutical and biotechnology: present and future

Abstract

For many years, drugs have been administered intranasally for their local effect on the mucosa ( e.g. Antihistamines, decongestant, vasoconstrictors and antibiotics). In more recent years many drugs have been shown to achieve a better systemic bioavailability by self medication through the nasal route than by oral administration. Some of them have been shown to duplicate the plasma profile as i.v. administration. More recently the intranasal route has aroused increasing interest as means of the systemic administration of vaccine, hormones, peptides and certain other drugs. Although traditional nasal drug delivery methods offer significant advantages over injection or oral administration, they face challenges that limit efficacy and applications. Once relegated to treating conditions such as nasal congestion and rhinitis intranasal drug delivery is now gaining attention for administration of a wide range of pharmaceuticals. Pharmaceutical industries are looking at nasal drugdelivery options as a viable alternative to traditional routes of administration for systemic drugs. This is due to the high permeability of the nasal epithelium, allowing a higher molecular mass cut-off at approximately 1000 Da, and the rapid drug absorption rate with plasma drug profiles sometimes almost identical to those from intravenous injections. In this review, discuss the history of overall nasal drug delivery in the pharmaceutical and biotech industries at present and suggestions for the future