Transdermal drug delivery
This research focusses on the development of transdermal drug delivery systems utilising one-shot microfluidic actuators in conjunction with hollow microneedles.
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The goal of this research project is to design, evaluate and investigate devices that circumvent the outermost skin layer (Stratum Corneum). Apparently, the inert appearance of the skin hides the multifunctional organ, which it is. It contains body fluids and tissues, it is a protective layer against physical, chemical and biological exposure, it is a receptor of tactile, pain and thermal stimuli and it regulates heat loss from the body.
In this project we emphasize on a multidisciplinary system approach which includes transdermal interfaces enabling e.g. the delivery of highly potent macromolecular drugs or vaccines; the information extraction from impedance spectra of skin for disease diagnosis; the sampling of interstitial fluids from the skin for further analysis e.g. glucose detection.
The multidisciplinary project responds to a group of very distinct trends in modern healthcare today: minimal invasive and pain free procedures for use in home-care or point-of-care testing. An important aspect is the multidisciplinary system approach integrating different components, as for example hollow, side-opened microneedle arrays, a dosing and actuation system based on Expancel(R) microspheres and selectively addressable spike arrays.
A transdermal drug delivery system can be divided into two sub-systems, see figure.
Tthe microfluidic transdermal interface (MTI) which creates physical pathways for the liquid through the outermost skin layer using hollow, side-opened microneedles [1] the dosing and actuation unit (DAU) which is pumping the appropriate amount of liquid through the MTI at an appropriate moment. The approach results in a highly functional device of low system complexity by hybrid integration and is absolutely pain free for the patient.
Research during the last year has focused on developing the MTI and the DAU unit further. For the MTI, the microneedle array has been provided with a thin membrane seal at the needle openings to enable leak-free liquid delivery as well being a protective barrier to the liquid stored in the unit (cf. Roxhed et al.). The DAU concept has been further miniaturized by making pump and valve structures using a novel composite based on expandable microspheres incorporated in a silicone elastomer (cf. Samel et al.).
Project sponsor
- Swedish Foundation of Strategic Research (SSF)
