International journal of nanomedicineNov 28, 2024

Nose-to-brain delivery using solid and structured lipid nanoparticles

mRNA Technology Weekly Brief ↗PubMed ↗DOI ↗OA ↗

Updated Apr 3, 2026

Abstract

Intranasal delivery of drugs using and significantly enhances drug accumulation in the brain.

In vivo studies from 2019 to 2024 were reviewed, focusing on the effectiveness of solid lipid nanoparticles (SLNs) and nanostructured lipid carriers (NLCs) for treating central nervous system disorders.
Statistical evaluations revealed that intranasal delivery markedly improved drug targeting within the brain compared to other methods.
Pharmacodynamic assessments indicated that this delivery approach substantially increased the therapeutic effectiveness of drugs in alleviating symptoms in rat models of CNS diseases.
SLNs are recognized for their excellent compatibility, high drug-loading capacity, and stability, while NLCs enhance these properties by preventing drug leakage during storage.
The review discusses potential methods for improving the efficacy of nose-to-brain delivery of SLNs and NLCs, along with updates on clinical trials.

Simplified

The intranasal (IN) route of drug delivery can effectively penetrate the blood-brain barrier and deliver drugs directly to the brain for the treatment of central nervous system (CNS) disorders via intra-neuronal or extra-neuronal pathways. This approach has several advantages, including avoidance of first-pass metabolism, high bioavailability, ease of administration, and improved patient compliance. In recent years, an increasing number of studies have been conducted using drugs encapsulated in (SLNs) and (NLCs), and delivering them to the brain via the IN pathway. SLNs are the first-generation solid lipid nanocarriers, known for their excellent biocompatibility, high drug-loading capacity, and remarkable stability. NLCs, regarded as the second-generation SLNs, not only retain the advantages of SLNs but also exhibit enhanced stability, effectively preventing drug leakage during storage. In this review, we examined in vivo studies conducted between 2019 and 2024 that used SLNs and NLCs to address CNS disorders via the IN route. By using statistical methods to evaluate pharmacokinetic parameters, we found that IN delivery of SLNs and NLCs markedly enhanced drug accumulation and targeting within the brain. Additionally, pharmacodynamic evaluations indicated that this delivery method substantially improved the therapeutic effectiveness of the drugs in alleviating symptoms in rat models of CNS diseases. In addition, methods for enhancing the efficacy of nose-to-brain delivery of SLNs and NLCs are discussed, as well as advances in clinical trials regarding SLNs and NLCs.

Key numbers

597.57

Increase in Drug Targeting Efficiency

DTE% of HPL- in a Parkinson’s rat model

341.94

Drug Accumulation Ratio

RB% of BER-CS- in an Alzheimer’s disease rat model

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Funding

Competing interests

The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.

PubMed

Nose-to-brain delivery using solid and structured lipid nanoparticles

Abstract

Key numbers

Full Text

Funding

Competing interests

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