Gold Nanoparticles: Tunable Characteristics and Potential for Nasal Drug Delivery

Area of Science:

• Nanotechnology
• Materials Science
• Pharmacology

Background:

• Direct nose-to-brain drug delivery (NTBDD) offers a promising alternative to systemic administration.
• Gold nanostructures, like gold nanourchins (GNUs), have potential in biomedical applications due to their unique properties.
• Developing stable and effective delivery systems for intranasal administration is crucial for successful NTBDD.

Purpose of the Study:

• To prepare gold nanourchins (GNUs) using a seed-mediated method.
• To formulate GNUs into a pressurized metered dose inhaler (pMDI) for nasal delivery.
• To investigate the olfactory targeting potential and nasal deposition of the GNU-pMDI formulation for direct nose-to-brain drug delivery (NTBDD).

Main Methods:

• Gold nanourchins (GNUs) were synthesized using dopamine hydrochloride and silver nitrate.
• A pMDI formulation containing GNUs, water, ethanol, and HFA134a propellant was developed.
• Aerosol performance, nasal deposition in a human nasal replica, and cell viability (RPMI 2650) were evaluated.

Main Results:

• The prepared GNUs remained stable during storage and lyophilization.
• The pMDI formulation demonstrated good aerosolization performance with intact GNUs.
• 13% of particles were deposited beyond the nasal valve, with 5.6% recovered from the olfactory region.
• The formulation showed excellent compatibility with the RPMI 2650 nasal cell line.

Conclusions:

• The developed GNU-HFA-based pMDI formulation is stable and suitable for intranasal drug delivery.
• The formulation exhibits potential for olfactory targeting, enabling direct nose-to-brain drug delivery (NTBDD).
• This approach represents a promising strategy for targeted drug delivery to the brain via the nasal route.