An Efficient and Cost-Effective Nose-Only Inhalational Chamber for Rodents: Design, Optimization and Validation

Area of Science:

• Pulmonary Drug Delivery
• Inhalation Toxicology
• Rodent Models in Research

Background:

• Pulmonary disorders are often treated with inhaled medications delivered via nebulizers or inhalers.
• Existing rodent inhalers are expensive and require significant maintenance, hindering laboratory-scale research.
• There is a need for accessible and reliable systems for inhalational drug delivery in small animal models.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a simple, cost-effective, and reliable nose-only inhalation chamber for three mice.
• To characterize the aerosol properties and drug delivery efficiency of the developed system.

Main Methods:

• A novel nose-only inhalation chamber was designed and constructed for simultaneous exposure of three mice.
• Laser diffraction and next-generation impactor studies were used to analyze aerosol particle size (volume mean diameter and mass aerodynamic diameter).
• Voriconazole (VRC) delivery efficiency and lung deposition in mice were quantified using in vivo nebulization studies.

Main Results:

• The inhalation chamber successfully generated an aerosol cloud for rodent inhalation.
• Particle size analysis showed a volume mean diameter of 4.02 ± 0.30 μm and a mass aerodynamic diameter of 3.40 ± 0.27 μm.
• Approximately 2.05 ± 0.20 mg of voriconazole was available per port, with 76.12 ± 19.50 μg deposited in mouse lungs after 20 minutes of nebulization.

Conclusions:

• The developed nose-only inhalation chamber provides a reliable and affordable method for aerosol generation and exposure in mice.
• This system facilitates effective pulmonary drug delivery and lung deposition in a rodent model.
• The device is suitable for laboratory-scale research in pulmonary disorders and inhalation toxicology.