Abstract
Lower respiratory tract infections (LRTIs) are one of the leading causes of deaths in the world. Currently available treatment for this disease is with high doses of antibiotics which need to be administered frequently. Instead, pulmonary delivery of drugs has been considered as one of the most efficient routes of drug delivery to the targeted areas as it provides rapid onset of action, direct deposition of drugs into the lungs, and better therapeutic effects at low doses and is self-administrable by the patients. Thus, there is a need for scientists to design more convenient pulmonary drug delivery systems towards the innovation of a novel treatment system for LRTIs. Drug-encapsulating polymer nanoparticles have been investigated for lung delivery which could significantly reduce the limitations of the currently available treatment system for LRTIs. However, the selection of an appropriate polymer carrier for the drugs is a critical issue for the successful formulations of inhalable nanoparticles. In this review, the current understanding of LRTIs, management systems for this disease and their limitations, pulmonary drug delivery systems and the challenges of drug delivery through the pulmonary route are discussed. Drug-encapsulating polymer nanoparticles for lung delivery, antibiotics used in pulmonary delivery and drug encapsulation techniques have also been reviewed. A strong emphasis is placed on the impact of drug delivery into the infected lungs.
Highlights
Lower respiratory tract infections (LRTIs) are one of the major lung diseases caused by the pathogenic bacteria Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Streptococcus pneumonia, which are associated with cystic brosis (CF), chronic obstructive pulmonary diseaseMohammad Zaidur Rahman Sabuj obtained his Master of Research degree from the Biological Sciences Department, Macquarie University, Australia
This review provides an overview on LRTIs, available treatments against this disease and their drawbacks
The direct and indirect cost associated with the management system of the LRTIs has a huge economic impact on the world economy
Summary
Lower respiratory tract infections (LRTIs) are one of the major lung diseases caused by the pathogenic bacteria Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Streptococcus pneumonia, which are associated with cystic brosis (CF), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Nazrul Islam completed his PhD at the Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Monash University, Australia He is a senior lecturer in the Faculty of Health, Queensland University of Technology (QUT), Brisbane, Australia. His research is focused on nanoparticulate pulmonary drug delivery and understanding the mechanism of micronized drug dispersion from powder agglomerates to increase the delivery efficiency from dry powder inhaler (DPI) formulations. Pulmonary drug delivery technology is based on the delivery of inhalable formulations (micronized dry powders, solutions, or suspensions) which are aerosolized by suitable devices and deposited into the deep lungs. This route of drug delivery is efficient in delivering drugs directly into the deep lungs. Common preparation techniques used to synthesize drug-encapsulating polymer nanoparticles for lung delivery are described
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