Targeted drug delivery to the brain using focused ultrasound.
Drug delivery to the brain remains a challenging field. The presence of a physiological barrier, the blood-brain barrier (BBB), complicates the delivery of drugs to the brain. Although several methods have been developed for drug delivery to the brain, they have problems such as being invasive or lacking in target specificity. On the other hand, ultrasound has emerged as a treatment method and a diagnostic technology. Several studies have shown the feasibility of using ultrasound for the localized and reversible disruption of the BBB. In this review, I would like to review the recent advancement of ultrasound-induced MRI-guided BBB disruption technique and other methods for delivering drugs to the brain.
Kinoshita
Manabu
M
Department of Radiology, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA. mkinosit@bwh.harvard.edu
D000818:Animals; D001812:Blood-Brain Barrier / Q000503:physiopathology*; D001921:Brain / Q000098:blood supply* / Q000187:drug effects; D003287:Contrast Media / Q000008:administration & dosage; D016503:Drug Delivery Systems / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods* / Q000639:trends; D004358:Drug Therapy / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D051379:Mice; D045423:Microbubbles; D011817:Rabbits; D051381:Rats; D014465:Ultrasonics
D003287:Contrast Media