Transcript Microneedle arrays

Microneedle Arrays
BME 281 Dr. Sun
Margaret Franklin
What are Microneedle Arrays?
• Small patches (less than a square
inch) made up of small needles
• Deliver medicine to the skin rather
than the muscle
o Better immune responses
because the body encounters
pathogens first on its surface
History
First discovered in 1998 but become
a much more common interest in
recent years
First made out of silicon
Easy manufacturing process
• Any shape
• Any size
How It’s Made
4 types of microneedles
Made from many different types of materials
• Plastic
• Metal
• Polymer
• Glass
• Ceramic
Layers of Skin
• Microneedle arrays are small
and invasive
• Pass through the epidermis
layer of the skin, but do not
enter the dermis
• Doesn’t encounter the
nerves, so no pain is present
How it Works
• Needles are dry- hard and sharp
• Injected into the skin- body fluids surround needles and make them swell
• The hard polymer that was on the inside turns into a soft material that keeps
the skin open while the medicine is let out of the microneedle and into the body
• The soft microneedle is then painlessly removed
Simple and
safe
Why is This Better?
• No pain
• The needles can never accidently stick another body
• Vaccines don’t need health clinics to administer the shot
• No disposable procedure needed
• Cost effective
• No temperature control
• Proper dosage
• Greater quantities
Future
Microneedle capsules
• Allow for oral delivery of large molecules
Made up of
• Drug reservoir
• pH-sensitive coating
References
• S. Kaushik, A.H. Hord, D.D. Denson, D.V. McAllister, S. Smitra, M.G. Allen, M.R. Prausnitz Lack of pain
associated with microfabricated microneedles Anesth. Analg., 92 (2001), pp. 502–504
• Hong, Xiaoyun, and Weien Yuan. "Hydrogel Microneedle Arrays for Transdermal Drug Delivery." Springer.
N.p., 1 July 2014. Web. 20 Sept. 2015.
• Trafton, Anne. "New Drug-delivery Capsule May Replace Injections." MIT News. N.p., 1 Oct. 2014. Web. 20
Sept. 2015.
• Kim, Yeu-Chun, Jung-Hwan Park, and Mark R. Prausnitz. "Microneedles for Drug and Vaccine
Delivery." Advanced Drug Delivery Reviews 64.14 (2012): 1547-568. Web