Penetration of Drugs Through Skin: A Complex Rate-Controlling Membrane

June 2012

Marie‐Alexandrine Bolzinger, Stéphanie Briançon, Jocelyne Pelletier, Yves Chevalier

Studysummary This review discusses recent advances in skin penetration mechanisms, specifically focusing on the enhanced understanding of the follicular pathway and its implications for transdermal therapies, immune system targeting, and nanoparticle safety.

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Research cited in this study

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research Human Hair Follicle: Reservoir Function and Selective Targeting

97 citations , September 2011 in “British Journal of Dermatology”

The human hair follicle can store topical compounds and be targeted for drug delivery with minimal side effects.

research Selective Follicular Targeting by Modification of the Particle Sizes

263 citations , February 2011 in “Journal of Controlled Release”

This study found that medium-sized particles (643 and 646 nm) penetrated deeper into porcine hair follicles in vitro than smaller or larger particles, suggesting size-selective targeting within follicular sites.

research Permeation of Topically Applied Caffeine Through Human Skin – A Comparison of In Vivo and In Vitro Data

82 citations , May 2009 in “BJCP. British journal of clinical pharmacology/British journal of clinical pharmacology”

The study reported that combining the Follicular Closing Technique with the Franz diffusion cell is a valuable method for investigating follicular caffeine penetration in vitro, though kinetics differ from in vivo results.

research Comparison of Two In Vitro Models for the Analysis of Follicular Penetration and Its Prevention by Barrier Emulsions

33 citations , February 2009 in “European journal of pharmaceutics and biopharmaceutics”

This study found that porcine ear skin is more suitable than excised human skin for investigating the efficacy of barrier emulsions in preventing pollen allergen penetration due to its lack of tissue contraction.

research Follicular Transport Route: Research Progress and Future Perspectives

211 citations , February 2009 in “European journal of pharmaceutics and biopharmaceutics”

This review summarizes recent advancements in follicular targeting for drug delivery via hair follicles and calls for pilot studies in humans to explore potential clinical applications.

research Nanoparticle-Based Targeting of Vaccine Compounds to Skin Antigen-Presenting Cells by Hair Follicles and Their Transport in Mice

119 citations , December 2008 in “The journal of investigative dermatology/Journal of investigative dermatology”

In this study, transcutaneously applied nanoparticles and viral vectors were shown to penetrate murine hair follicles, internalize in antigen-presenting cells, and induce immune responses, suggesting a promising approach for vaccine delivery.

research 40nm, But Not 750 or 1,500nm, Nanoparticles Enter Epidermal CD1a+ Cells After Transcutaneous Application on Human Skin

323 citations , April 2006 in “The journal of investigative dermatology/Journal of investigative dermatology”

This study found that 40 nm nanoparticles can effectively penetrate into hair follicles and epidermal Langerhans cells in human skin samples, potentially enabling efficient transcutaneous vaccine delivery.

research Stem Cells and Their Niches

1549 citations , March 2006 in “Science”

This review discusses the stem cell niche concept in mammalian systems and reports no new clinical results, highlighting recent progress and identifying important unanswered questions.

research Transfollicular Drug Delivery: Is It a Reality?

141 citations , November 2005 in “International journal of pharmaceutics”

This review examines the role of hair follicles and sebaceous glands in percutaneous drug delivery but does not report new clinical results; it calls for further exploration of follicle-targeting therapies.

research Penetration Profile of Microspheres in Follicular Targeting of Terminal Hair Follicles

316 citations , June 2004 in “The journal of investigative dermatology/Journal of investigative dermatology”

This study found that using a standardized protocol with microspheres of approximately 1.5 micrometers enhances penetration into hair follicles, particularly when skin is treated with cyanoacrylate skin surface stripping.

research Variations of Hair Follicle Size and Distribution in Different Body Sites

405 citations , January 2004 in “Journal of Investigative Dermatology”

This study found that hair follicle characteristics vary significantly across different body sites, with the forehead and calf showing the highest potential follicular reservoirs, challenging previous assumptions about skin appendage distribution.