NANO-IN-MICROPARTICLES FOR THE PULMONARY DELIVERY OF CURCUMIN IN LUNG CANCER
Keywords:
Curcumin; nano-in-microparticles; pulmonary drug delivery; lung cancer; dry powder inhaler; nanoparticle formulation; spray drying; aerosol performance.Abstract
Lung cancer remains a major global health challenge, and the effectiveness of anticancer treatment can be limited by systemic toxicity, inadequate drug accumulation at the tumor site, and the development of treatment resistance. Curcumin, a naturally occurring polyphenolic compound derived from Curcuma longa, has demonstrated anticancer activity in preclinical research. However, its poor aqueous solubility, limited bioavailability, and chemical instability restrict its pharmaceutical application.
References
1. Baghdan E, Duse L, Schüer JJ, Pinnapireddy SR, Pourasghar M, Schäfer J, Schneider M, Bakowsky U. Development of inhalable curcumin loaded Nano-in-Microparticles for bronchoscopic photodynamic therapy. European Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences. 2019;132:63–71. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejps.2019.02.025
2. Inhalation treatment of primary lung cancer using liposomal curcumin dry powder inhalers. Acta Pharmaceutica Sinica B. 2018;8(3):440–448. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apsb.2018.03.004
3. Loo CY, Traini D, Young PM, Parumasivam T, Lee WH. Pulmonary delivery of curcumin and quercetin nanoparticles for lung cancer—Part 1: Aerosol performance characterization. Journal of Drug Delivery Science and Technology. 2023;86:104646. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jddst.2023.104646
4. Loo CY, Traini D, Young PM, Parumasivam T, Lee WH. Pulmonary delivery of curcumin and quercetin nanoparticles for lung cancer—Part 2: Toxicity and endocytosis. Journal of Drug Delivery Science and Technology. 2023. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jddst.2023.104375
5. Ghodke SS, Taylor KMG, Somavarapu S. Spray-dried micellar dry powder inhalation of curcumin for lung-targeted delivery in non-small cell lung cancer therapy. Journal of Microencapsulation. 2025;42(5):459–471. https://doi.org/10.1080/02652048.2025.2495246