Nanocrystals Technology for Transdermal Delivery of Water-Insoluble Drugs

The poor penetration and low bioavailability are the main challenges for transdermal drug delivery. Nanocrystals technology is an attractive method for water-insoluble drug transdermal delivery, as the literature demonstrated that the penetration and bioavailability of the transdermal delivered water-insoluble drugs significantly enhanced and improved by the nanocrystals technology. Currently, the nanocrystals technology has been applied in transdermal delivery of cosmeceutical and for therapy of skin diseases, such as diclofenac acid, tretinoin and rutin. This review focused on the advantages of the nanocrystals technology for transdermal delivery. The special features of nanocrystals for the transdermal delivery of poorly soluble drugs are reviewed (skin disease treatment, safety and compliance, applying to cosmeceutical). Furthermore, the factors of influencing the nanocrystals penetration and the approaches of improving nanocrystals transdermal delivery are also discussed in detail.