Advanced Materials for Drug Delivery Across Mucosal Barrier

Mucus is a viscoelastic gel that traps pathogens and other foreign particles to limit their penetration into the underlying epithelium. Dosage forms containing particle-based drug delivery systems are trapped in mucosal layers and will be removed by mucus turnover. Mucoadhesion avoids premature wash-off and prolongs the residence time of drugs on mucus. Moreover, mucus penetration is essential for molecules to access the underlying epithelial tissues. Various strategies have been investigated to achieve mucoadhesion and mucus penetration of drug carriers. Innovations in materials used for the construction of drug-carrier systems allowed the development of different mucoadhesion and mucus penetration delivery systems. Over the last decade, advances in the field of materials chemistry, with a focus on biocompatibility, has led to the expansion of the pool of materials available for drug delivery applications. The choice of materials in mucosal delivery is generally dependent on the intended therapeutic target, properties of pathological features of the mucosa, among others. This review presents an up-to-date account of materials including synthesis, physical and chemical modifications of mucoadhesive materials, nanocarriers, viral mimics used for the construction of mucosal drug delivery systems.