AUTHOR=Rajput Amarjitsing , Pingale Prashant , Dhapte-Pawar Vividha 

TITLE=Nasal delivery of neurotherapeutics via nanocarriers: Facets, aspects, and prospects

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Pharmacology

VOLUME=Volume 13 - 2022

YEAR=2022

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/pharmacology/articles/10.3389/fphar.2022.979682

DOI=10.3389/fphar.2022.979682

ISSN=1663-9812

ABSTRACT=Alzheimer's disease (AD) is one of the neurological ailments which continue to represent a major public health challenge owing to the increased life expectancy and the aging population. Progressive memory loss, decrease in cognitive behavior owing to irreversible destruction of neurons along with expensive therapeutic interventions call for an effective, alternate yet affordable treatment for Alzheimer's disease. Safe and effective delivery of neurotherapeutics in Alzheimer’s like central nervous system (CNS) disorders still remains elusive, despite the major advances in both, neuroscience and drug delivery research. The blood brain barrier (BBB) with its tight endothelial cell layer surrounded by astrocyte foot processes poses as a major barrier for the entry of drugs into the brain. Nasal drug delivery has emerged as a reliable method to bypass this BBB and deliver a wide range of neurotherapeutic agents to the brain effectively. This nasal route comprises of the olfactory or trigeminal nerves originating from brain and terminating into the nasal cavity at the respiratory epithelium or olfactory neuroepithelium. They represent the most direct method of non-invasive entry into the brain, opening the most suitable therapeutic avenue for neurological diseases treatment. Also, drugs loaded into nanocarriers can have better interaction with mucosa that assists in direct brain delivery of active molecules bypassing the BBB and achieving rapid cerebrospinal fluid levels. Lipid particulate systems, emulsion-based systems, vesicular drug delivery systems and other nanocarriers have evolved as promising drug delivery approaches for effective brain delivery of the anti-Alzheimer's drugs with improved permeability as well as bioavailability via nasal route. Charge, size, nature of neurotherapeutics as well as formulation excipients influences the effective and targeted drug delivery using nanocarriers via nasal route. This article elaborates on the recent advances in nanocarrier based nasal drug delivery systems for direct and effective brain delivery of the neurotherapeutic molecules. Additionally, we have attempted to highlight the various experimental strategies, underlying mechanisms in the pathogenesis and therapy of CNS diseases, computational approaches, clinical investigations pursued so far to attain and enhance the direct delivery of therapeutic agents to the brain via nose to brain route, using nanocarriers.