Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2008;3(3):295-309.
doi: 10.2147/ijn.s595.

Nanocrystal technology, drug delivery and clinical applications

Jens-Uwe A H Junghanns  1 , Rainer H Müller
Affiliations
Review

Nanocrystal technology, drug delivery and clinical applications

Jens-Uwe A H Junghanns et al. Int J Nanomedicine. 2008.

Abstract

Nanotechnology will affect our lives tremendously over the next decade in very different fields, including medicine and pharmacy. Transfer of materials into the nanodimension changes their physical properties which were used in pharmaceutics to develop a new innovative formulation principle for poorly soluble drugs: the drug nanocrystals. The drug nanocrystals do not belong to the future; the first products are already on the market. The industrially relevant production technologies, pearl milling and high pressure homogenization, are reviewed. The physics behind the drug nanocrystals and changes of their physical properties are discussed. The marketed products are presented and the special physical effects ofnanocrystals explained which are utilized in each market product. Examples of products in the development pipelines (clinical phases) are presented and the benefits for in vivo administration of drug nanocrystals are summarized in an overview.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Surface enlargement and increase in number of crystals by particle size diminution. Used with permission from Junghanns (2006).
Figure 2
Figure 2
Comparison of a microcrystal (A) and a nanocrystal (B) and their surface curvature and concentration gradient over the diffusional distance (h). Abbreviations: cs, drug-saturated water at surface (M, microcrystal; N, nanocrystal); Cx, bulk concentration at diffusional distance; h, diffusional distance. dc/dt ~ (cs − cx)/h. Used with permission from Junghanns (2006).
Figure 3
Figure 3
Increasing dissolution pressure over a flat surface, a microparticle, and a nanoparticle. Abbreviations: p, dissolution pressure; a, flat surface; b, microparticle; c, nanoparticle. Used with permission from Junghanns (2006).
Figure 4
Figure 4
Increase in saturation solubility of BaSO4 in water as a function of the particle size calculated using the Kelvin equation. Used with permission from Anger (2005).
Figure 5
Figure 5
Basic principle of high pressure homogenization using a piston gap homogenizer. Used with permission from Junghanns (2006).
Figure 6
Figure 6
Scanning electron microscopic picture of a nanosuspension prepared with high pressure homogenization. Used with permission from Möschwitzer (2005).
Figure 7
Figure 7
Structural formula of sirolimus.
Figure 8
Figure 8
Packaging of Rapamune®.
Figure 9
Figure 9
Structural formula of aprepitant.
Figure 10
Figure 10
Packaging of Emend®.
Figure 11
Figure 11
Structural formula of fenofibrate.
Figure 12
Figure 12
Packaging of Tricor®.
Figure 13
Figure 13
Structural formula of megestrol acetate.
Figure 14
Figure 14
Packaging of Megace® ES.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Anger S. Pharmazeutische Technologie. Berlin: Freie Universität; 2005. PhD Thesis.
    1. Bhol KC, Alroy J, Schechter PJ. Anti-inflammatory effect of topical nanocrystalline silver cream on allergic contact dermatitis in a guinea pig model. Clin Exp Dermatol. 2004;29:282–7. - PubMed
    1. Bhol KC, Schechter PJ. Suppressive effects of topical nanocrystal-line silver on allergic contact dermatitis in mice [abstract] Clin Invest Med. 2004;274:196.
    1. Bhol KC, Schechter PJ. Topical nanocrystalline silver cream inhibits expression of matrix metalloproteinase-9 in animal models of allergic contact dermatitis [abstract] . J Invest Dermatol. 2005a;1244:117.
    1. Bhol KC, Schechter PJ. Topical nanocrystalline silver cream suppresses inflammatory cytokines and induces apoptosis of inflammatory cells in a murine model of allergic contact dermatitis. Brit J Dermatol. 2005b;152:1235–42. - PubMed

MeSH terms