Skin biomechanics: Breaking the dermal barriers with microneedles
Masood Ali,
Sarika Namjoshi,
Heather A.E. Benson,
Tushar Kumeria,
Yousuf Mohammed
Affiliations
Masood Ali
Therapeutics Research Group, The University of Queensland, Diamantina Institute, Faculty of Medicine, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD 4102, Australia
Sarika Namjoshi
Therapeutics Research Group, The University of Queensland, Diamantina Institute, Faculty of Medicine, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD 4102, Australia
Heather A.E. Benson
Clinical and Health Sciences, University of South Australia, Adelaide, SA 5001, Australia; Curtin Medical School, Curtin University, Perth, WA 6845, Australia
Tushar Kumeria
School of Materials Science and Engineering, The University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia; Australian Centre for Nanomedicine, The University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia
Yousuf Mohammed
Therapeutics Research Group, The University of Queensland, Diamantina Institute, Faculty of Medicine, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD 4102, Australia
ABSTRACT: Microneedles (μND) are promising devices that can be used to transport a wide variety of active compounds into the skin. To serve as an effective delivery system, μND must pierce the human stratum corneum (~10-20 μm), without breaking or buckling during penetration. In the current review, we discuss both the anatomical features and biomechanical properties of skin in order to understand the local environment and resistive forces relevant to μNDs insertion. Of particular importance are the factors that affect μND insertion, such as their geometry and material composition, as these can be manipulated in the design and development phase to optimise skin insertion. We review the research relevant to μND and how this interacts with skin properties. We have also reviewed the most commonly used skin drug diffusion modelling used to predict drug behaviour from μNDs, and discussed the current challenges faced by μNDs to enter clinical trials and provide positive clinical outcomes.
