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In Vitro Analysis of Microneedle Patches for Transdermal Drug Delivery: A Minimally Invasive Route to Systemic
Haylee L Wagner1, Tailynn Y McCarty1, Theeraphop Prachyathipsakul2
1Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, Massachusetts 01003, United States.
ACS Biomaterials Science & Engineering
|November 26, 2025
Summary
Alginate microneedle patches offer a minimally invasive method for systemic drug delivery. These patches effectively release functional nanoparticles, enhancing therapeutic bioavailability and enabling self-administration.
Area of Science:
- Biomaterials Science
- Drug Delivery Systems
- Nanotechnology
Background:
- Systemic delivery of nanoparticles faces challenges with current methods like intravenous injection or oral administration, which have limitations such as pain and low bioavailability.
- Developing novel, minimally invasive delivery systems is crucial for improving therapeutic efficacy and patient compliance.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop and evaluate alginate-based microneedle patches for the in vitro delivery of various nanoparticles.
- To assess the release kinetics, bioactivity, cellular uptake, and targeting capabilities of nanoparticles delivered via microneedle patches.
Main Methods:
- Fabrication of alginate-based microneedle patches loaded with different nanoparticle formulations.
- In vitro release studies to evaluate therapeutic payload release from the microneedles.
- Assessment of the bioactivity of released therapeutics (e.g., antimicrobial activity of curcumin).
- Cellular uptake studies using nanoparticles (nanogels, antibody-conjugated nanogels, extracellular vesicles) in relevant cell lines (cancerous and normal breast epithelial cells, fibroblasts).
- Ex vivo skin penetration studies using microneedle patches on skin samples.
Main Results:
- Alginate microneedle patches successfully released encapsulated therapeutics, which retained their bioactivity.
- Curcumin released from microneedles showed retained antimicrobial activity.
- Nanogels were effectively uptaken by both cancerous and normal breast epithelial cells.
- Antibody-conjugated nanogels maintained functional targeting capabilities.
- Extracellular vesicles released from microneedles were uptaken by fibroblasts.
- Microneedle patches demonstrated successful penetration of ex vivo skin epidermis, allowing nanoparticle permeation into deeper tissues.
Conclusions:
- Alginate microneedle patches are a versatile platform for delivering a range of functional nanoparticles.
- This microneedle system shows potential for enhancing therapeutic bioavailability through minimally invasive, self-administered delivery.
- The demonstrated payload versatility and skin penetration capabilities highlight the promise of microneedle patches for advanced drug delivery applications.
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