Translating Nanotechnology from Bench to Pharmaceutical Market: Barriers, Success, and Promises

Abstract

Nanotechnology is a buzzword of this millennium and it has transformed the face of research in science and technology. The advent of nanotechnology has also influenced the biomedical and pharmaceutical research since last decade. Various nano-architectures have been designed for improv-ing the therapeutic performance of drugs, proteins, peptides, and genes and to achieve their targeting at the site of ac-tion. Although nanotechnology has demonstrated dramatic potential in drug delivery research, like any technology, its real success depends on the ability of drug delivery scientists to translate and scale innovations to the commercial pharma-ceutical products. It is indeed a very challenging task to suc-cessfully overcome manufacturing, clinical, and regulatory hurdles associated with a nanotech product. Nevertheless, the pharmaceutical industry has witnessed commercializa-tion of the nanotechnology-based products for various ap-plications. In the present special issue, we have tried to consolidate various aspects of existing and upcoming nan-otechnologies for drug delivery. Contribution by V. Morigi et al. takes an overview of business potential and market trend of pharmaceutical nano-technology. The authors have also discussed financial aspects of nanotechnology by citing noteworthy examples of few nanotech products that have already been commercialized. This contribution could be useful to scientists aiming to start up nanotechnological business ventures. Contribution by N. Anton et al. demonstrates how nanotechnology can change the face of conventional drug delivery systems. In this interesting investigation, the authors demonstrate that coat-ing of conventional tablets with lipid nanoemulsion can be used to modulate the release of the drug from tablet matrix. The paper by P. Severino et al. gives an account of potential of solid lipid nanocarriers for the oral delivery of drugs and peptides. The authors have provided information about the lipids that can be used for oral delivery, role of lipids in the oral delivery, toxicological aspects of lipid nanocarriers, and products under clinical development. S. Banerjee et al. have given a complete overview of poly-ethylene-glycol-(PEG-) based conjugates for drug delivery. The contribution fosters understanding design aspects of and chemistry behind PEG-based nano-architectures for drug delivery. Furthermore, the paper has a detailed discussion on the various PEG-conjugates available in the pharmaceutical market. Contribution by A. Garcia et al. highlights the potential of particle replication in nonwetting templates (PRINT), a platform technology based on lithographic tech-niques for drug delivery applications. The contribution clearly demonstrates potential of PRINT technology to ge-nerate particles of various, but precise, morphology for a variety of drugs and biotechnology-based therapeutics (pro-teins and siRNA). The application of PRINT technology for generating aerosols for pulmonary applications has also been described. This contribution is an example of the at-tributes required from a nanofabrication technique to cir-cumvent manufacturing-related issues in pharmaceutical na-notechnology.