Intranasal Drug Administration in Alzheimer-Type Dementia: Towards Clinical Applications

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Pharmacology
• Biotechnology

Background:

• Alzheimer-type dementia (ATD) treatments struggle with blood-brain barrier penetration and systemic side effects.
• The intranasal route offers direct brain access via olfactory and trigeminal pathways, but faces challenges in drug absorption and bioavailability.
• Technological strategies are essential to optimize formulation physicochemical characteristics for effective intranasal drug delivery.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review nanostructured lipid carriers (NLCs) for intranasal administration in Alzheimer-type dementia (ATD) treatment.
• To evaluate the potential of NLCs in overcoming intranasal delivery challenges for ATD therapeutics.
• To summarize current preclinical and clinical investigations of intranasal ATD treatments.

Main Methods:

• Literature review of studies investigating NLCs for intranasal administration in ATD.
• Analysis of preclinical data on NLCs' toxicity and therapeutic efficacy.
• Examination of current clinical trial status for intranasal ATD drug candidates.

Main Results:

• Lipid-based nanosystems, particularly NLCs, demonstrate promise in preclinical ATD research with low toxicity and good efficacy.
• NLCs show potential in overcoming challenges associated with intranasal drug absorption and bioavailability.
• Currently, no intranasal ATD drugs are approved, with only insulin, rivastigmine, and APH-1105 in clinical investigation.

Conclusions:

• Nanostructured lipid carriers are a promising strategy for intranasal delivery of ATD treatments.
• The intranasal route, enhanced by NLCs, has significant potential for future ATD therapy.
• Continued research and clinical trials are necessary to validate the efficacy of intranasal administration for ATD.