Tight junction modulator and drug delivery.
Recent progress in pharmaceutical technology based on genomic and proteomic research has provided many drug candidates, including not only chemicals but peptides, antibodies and nucleic acids. These candidates do not show pharmaceutical activity without their absorption into systemic flow and movement from the systemic flow into the target tissue. Epithelial and endothelial cell sheets play a pivotal role in the barrier between internal and external body and tissues. Tight junctions (TJs) between adjacent epithelial cells limit the movement of molecules through the intercellular space in epithelial and endothelial cell sheets. Thus, a promising strategy for drug delivery is the modulation of TJ components to allow molecules to pass through the TJ-based cellular barriers. In this review, we discuss recent progress in the development of TJ modulators and the possibility of absorption enhancers and drug-delivery systems based on TJ components.
Department of Bio Functional Molecular Chemistry, Osaka University, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Suita, Osaka 565-0871, Japan. masuo@phs.osaka-u.ac.jp
Koji
K
Matsuhisa
Masuo
M
Kondoh
Azusa
A
Takahashi
Kiyohito
K
Yagi
D000818:Animals; D001812:Blood-Brain Barrier / Q000187:drug effects; D001814:Blood-Testis Barrier / Q000187:drug effects; D016503:Drug Delivery Systems / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D007413:Intestinal Mucosa / Q000187:drug effects; D008954:Models, Biological; D009297:Nasal Mucosa / Q000187:drug effects; D019108:Tight Junctions / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology*