Nanoparticle-mediated drug delivery to treat infections in the female reproductive tract: evaluation of experimental systems and the potential for mathematical modeling

International Journal of Nanomedicine
Lee B SimsJill M Steinbach-Rankins

Abstract

A variety of drug-delivery platforms have been employed to deliver therapeutic agents across cervicovaginal mucus (CVM) and the vaginal mucosa, offering the capability to increase the longevity and retention of active agents to treat infections of the female reproductive tract (FRT). Nanoparticles (NPs) have been shown to improve retention, diffusion, and cell-specific targeting via specific surface modifications, relative to other delivery platforms. In particular, polymeric NPs represent a promising option that has shown improved distribution through the CVM. These NPs are typically fabricated from nontoxic, non-inflammatory, US Food and Drug Administration-approved polymers that improve biocompatibility. This review summarizes recent experimental studies that have evaluated NP transport in the FRT, and highlights research areas that more thoroughly and efficiently inform polymeric NP design, including mathematical modeling. An overview of the in vitro, ex vivo, and in vivo NP studies conducted to date - whereby transport parameters are determined, extrapolated, and validated - is presented first. The impact of different NP design features on transport through the FRT is summarized, and gaps that exist due to the limitations ...Continue Reading

Methods Mentioned

BETA
rheology
nuclear
dynamic light scattering
fluorescence microscopy
biopsies

Software Mentioned

CVM

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