Current Medicinal Chemistry, 2010, 17, 585-594

585

Development of Nanoparticles for Antimicrobial Drug Delivery

L. Zhang*,1,2, D. Pornpattananangkul2,3, C.-M.J. Hu2,3 and C.-M. Huang*,2,4
1

Department of Nanoengineering; 2Moores Cancer Center; 3Department of Bioengineering and 4Division of Dermatology, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA
Abstract: This review focuses on the development of nanoparticle systems for antimicrobial drug delivery. Numerous antimicrobial drugs have been prescribed to kill or inhibit the growth of microbes such as bacteria, fungi and viruses. Even
though the therapeutic efficacy of these drugs has been well established, inefficient delivery could result in inadequate
therapeutic index and local and systemic side effects including cutaneous irritation, peeling, scaling and gut flora reduction. Nanostructured biomaterials, nanoparticles in particular, have unique physicochemical properties such as ultra small
and controllable size, large surface area to mass ratio, high reactivity, and functionalizable structure. These properties can
be applied to facilitate the administration of antimicrobial drugs, thereby overcoming some of the limitations in traditional
antimicrobial therapeutics. In recent years, encapsulation of antimicrobial drugs in nanoparticle systems has emerged as
an innovative and promising alternative that enhances therapeutic effectiveness and minimizes undesirable side effects of
the drugs. Here the current progress and challenges in synthesizing nanoparticle platforms for delivering various antimicrobial drugs are reviewed. We also call attention to the need to unite the shared interest between nanoengineers and microbiologists in developing nanotechnology for the treatment of microbial diseases.

Keywords: Antimicrobial delivery, microbes, liposomes, polymeric nanoparticles, solid lipid nanoparticles, dendrimers.
INTRODUCTION
Upon invasion of the epithelial surfaces, infectious microorganisms spread throughout the body via the circulatory
system. They are then removed from the blood by macrophages which are present in all major organs such as liver,
spleen and bone marrow [1]. After being phagocytosed by
macrophages, the infectious microorganisms are trapped in
phagosomes, which then fuse with lysosomal granules inside
cell cytoplasm forming phagolysosomes. Subsequently, oxygen-dependent or oxygen-independent bacterial killing
mechanisms induced by enzymes inside the phagolysosomes
occur to digest the trapped microorganisms. However, many
microorganisms are able to evade the macrophage digestion
via escaping from the phagosomes, inhibiting the
phagosome-lysosome fusion, withstanding the lysosomal
enzymes, or resisting oxidative and non-oxidative killing
mechanisms. These bacterial defense mechanisms make intracellular infections difficult to eradicate resulting in infectious diseases that range from staph infections to tuberculosis
[1].
An antimicrobial refers to a substance that kills or inhibits the growth of microorganisms. Since the discovery of
antimicrobial drugs in the 1960s [2], many infectious diseases have been overcome. Typically, antimicrobials kill
bacteria by binding to some vital compounds of bacterial
metabolism, thereby inhibiting the synthesis of functional
biomolecules or impeding normal cellular activities. For instance,
-lactams such as penicillins and cephalosporins inhibit bacteria cell wall synthesis; tetracyclines, macrolides,
and clindamycin inhibit protein synthesis; metronidazole and
quinolones inhibit nucleic acid synthesis; and sulphonamides
and trimethoprim have an inhibitory effect on enzyme
*Address correspondence to these authors at the Department of Nanoengineering, University of California San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, MC-0815,
La Jolla, CA 92093, USA; Tel: 1-858-246-0999; E-mail: zhang@ucsd.edu
Division of Dermatology, University of California San Diego, 9500 Gilman
Drive, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA; Tel: 1-858-822-4627;
E-mail: chunming@ucsd.edu
0929-8673/10 $55.00+.00

synthesis. Some antimicrobials such as penicillin are only

effective against a narrow range of bacteria, whereas others,
like ampicillin, kill a broad spectrum of Gram-positive and
Gram-negative bacteria [3]. Despite the great progress in
antimicrobial development, many infectious diseases, especially intracellular infections, remain difficult to treat. One
major reason is that many antimicrobials are difficult to
transport through cell membranes and have low activity inside the cells, thereby imposing negligible inhibitory or bactericidal effects on the intracellular bacteria. In addition, antimicrobial toxicity to healthy tissues poses a significant
limitation to their use. Aminoglycosides, for instance, cause
ototoxicity and nephrotoxicity and have to be given in controlled dosages. Another major issue with antimicrobials
stems from the acquired resistance of infectious microbes. In
2002, more than 70% of bacteria causing hospital-acquired
infections were resistant to at least one common antimicrobial in the United States. To address these issues, alternative
antimicrobial drug delivery strategies have been proposed.
Over the last few decades, the applications of nanotechnology in medicine have been extensively explored in many
medical areas, especially in drug delivery. Nanotechnology
concerns the understanding and control of matters in the 1100 nm range, at which scale materials have unique physicochemical properties including ultra small size, large surface
to mass ratio, high reactivity and unique interactions with
biological systems [4]. By loading drugs into nanoparticles
through physical encapsulation, adsorption, or chemical conjugation, the pharmacokinetics and therapeutic index of the
drugs can be significantly improved in contrast to the free
drug counterparts. Many advantages of nanoparticle-based
drug delivery have been recognized, including improving
serum solubility of the drugs, prolonging the systemic circulation lifetime, releasing drugs at a sustained and controlled
manner, preferentially delivering drugs to the tissues and
cells of interest, and concurrently delivering multiple
therapeutic agents to the same cells for combination therapy
[4-6]. Moreover, drug-loaded nanoparticles can enter host
cells through endocytosis and then release drug payloads to
treat microbes-induced intracellular infections. As a result, a
2010 Bentham Science Publishers Ltd.

586 Current Medicinal Chemistry, 2010 Vol. 17, No. 6

Zhang et al.

number of nanoparticle-based drug delivery systems have

been approved for clinical uses to treat a variety of diseases
and many other therapeutic nanoparticle formulations are
currently under various stages of clinical tests [4, 7]. Knowing the vast scope of nanoparticle drug delivery, here we will
only focus on the development and application of nanoparticles for antimicrobial drug delivery through various mechanisms (Fig. (1)). As listed in Fig. (2), A few types of
nanoparticles including liposomes, polymeric nanoparticles,
solid lipid nanoparticles and dendrimers have been widely
investigated as antimicrobial drug delivery platforms, of
which several products have been introduced into pharmaceutical market. This review will summarize the current
status, mechanisms of action, and structure-activity relationship of these nanoparticle-based antimicrobial delivery systems.
LIPOSOMES
DELIVERY

FOR

ANTIMICROBIAL

DRUG

Liposomes are spherical lipid vesicles with a bilayered

membrane structure consisting of amphiphilic lipid molecules [8]. Liposome structure was first described in 1965 [9],
and they were proposed as a drug delivery nanoparticle platform in 1970s [10]. After extensive studies on their funda-

mental properties including lipid polymorphisms, lipidprotein and lipid-drug interactions, and mechanisms of
liposome disposition in 1980s, the application potential of
liposomes as a drug delivery vehicle was thoroughly recognized and started being transferred to practice. Liposomes
were initially introduced to the cosmetic market by Dior in
1986. In 1995, Doxil (doxorubicin liposomes) became the
first liposomal delivery system approved by the Food and
Drug Administration (FDA) to treat AIDS associated Kaposi
s sarcoma [11, 12]. Liposomal drug delivery system can be
made of either natural or synthetic lipids. One of the most
commonly used lipids in liposome preparation is phosphotidylcholine, which is an electrically neutral phospholipid that
contains fatty acyl chains of varying degrees of saturation
and length. Cholesterol is normally incorporated into the
formulation to adjust membrane rigidity and stability. Structurally, liposomes can be classified into multilamellar vesicles (MLVs), which consist of multiple phospholipid bilayer
membranes, and unilamellar vesicles (ULVs), which have a
single lipid bilayer. ULVs can be further classified into small
unilamellar vesicles (SUVs) and large unilamellar vesicles
(LUVs) depending on their size range [13]. Methods for preparing liposomes can take into consideration parameters such
as the physicochemical characteristics of the liposomal ingredients, materials to be contained within the liposomes,

Fig. (1). Mechanisms of nanoparticle-based antimicrobial drug delivery to microorganisms: (a) nanoparticles fuse with microbial cell wall or
membrane and release the carried drugs within the cell wall or membrane; (b) nanoparticles bind to cell wall and serve as a drug depot to
continuously release drug molecules, which will diffuse into the interior of the microorganisms.

Fig. (2). Schematic illustration of four nanoparticle platforms for antimicrobial drug delivery: (a) liposome, (b) polymeric nanoparticle, (c)
solid lipid nanoparticle, and (d) dendrimer. Black circles represent hydrophobic drugs; black squares represent hydrophilic drugs; and black
triangles represent either hydrophobic or hydrophilic drugs.

Nanotech Antimicrobials

particle size, polydispersity, surface zeta potential, shelftime, batch-to-batch reproducibility, and the possibility for
large-scale production of safe and efficient products.
Liposomes, ULVs in particular, do not form spontaneously.
Rather, liposomes form when a sufficient amount of energy
(e.g., via sonication, homogenization, shaking, or heating) is
supplied to phospholipids placed in water. Typical methods
for generating liposomes include sonication method [14],
(e.g., low shear rates can result in MLVs and high shear rates
can generate ULVs), extrusion method, and heading method
[15].
Currently, liposomes are the most widely used antimicrobial drug delivery system. One of the distinguishing features of liposomes is its lipid bilayer structure, which mimics
cell membranes and can readily fuse with infectious microbes. By directly fusing with bacterial membranes, the
drug payloads of liposomes can be released to the cell membranes or the interior of the bacteria. The unique structure of
liposomes, a lipid membrane surrounding an aqueous cavity,
enables them to carry both hydrophobic and hydrophilic
compounds without chemical modification. In addition, the
liposome surface can be easily functionalized with stealth
material to enhance their in vivo stability or targeting ligands
to enable preferential delivery of liposomes. For example,
polyethylene glycol (PEG) has been frequently conjugated to
liposome surface to create a stealth layer that prolongs the
circulation lifetime of liposomes in the blood stream. Specifically, the PEG coating forms a hydration layer that retards the reticuloendothelial system (RES) recognitions of
liposomes through sterically inhibiting hydrophobic and
electrostatic interactions with plasma proteins. On the other
hand, by attaching targeting ligands such as antibody, antibody segments, aptamer, peptides and small molecule
ligands to the surface of the liposomes, they can selectively
bind to microorganisms or infected cells and then release the
drug payloads to kill or inhibit the growth of the microorganisms.
AmBisome(NeXstar Pharmaceuticals, San Dimas, USA)
is an FDA approved liposomal formulation of amphotericin
B (AMB), which has been widely used in the clinic to treat
Candida spp, Aspergillus spp, Fusarium spp, and other fungi
infections in neutropenic, visceral leishmaniasis, and methylmalonic acidaemia patients [16-18]. In the AmBisome
formulation, AMB are intercalated into the phospholipid
bilayer of liposomes consisting of hydrogenated soy phosphaticylcholine, cholesterol, and distearoyl phosphatidylglycerol (DSPG) [19]. Freeze-fracture electron microscopy
results have shown that AmBisome delivered its drug content through an absorption mechanism. For example, AmBisome attached to the outer cell wall of Candida glabrata [20]
and released AMB to disrupt fungal membranes [21, 22].
Adler-Moore J. et al. have observed great specificity of AmBisome to the site of fungal infections. Following the injection of fluorescently-labeled AmBisome into Candidainfected mice, the localization of fluorescent liposomes has
been observed at the sites of fungal infections [23]. Because
of its liposomal structure, AmBisome has shown greater
pharmacokinetics than free AMB drug, including prolonged
systemic circulation half-life, reduced plasma clearance rate,
decreased renal toxicity, and most importantly, enhanced
therapeutic efficacy [24].

Current Medicinal Chemistry, 2010 Vol. 17, No. 6

587

Polymyxin B-loaded loposome represents another successful example of liposomal antimicrobial drug delivery.
Polymyxin B has been recognized for treating P. aeruginosa
related infections (e.g., pneumonias and chronic bronchopneumonias of cystic fibrosis). However, its systemic use
has been limited due to toxic side effects such as nephrotoxicity, ototoxicity and neuromuscular blockade. It has been
reported that liposomal encapsulation of polymyxin B dramatically diminished the drugs side effects and improved its
antimicrobial activity against resistant strains of P. aeruginosa [25]. The action mechanism of liposomal polymyxin B
against P. aeruginosais has been recognized as membrane
fusion. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM), flow cytometry and fluorescent resonance energy transfer studies
have revealed lipid reorganizations in P. aeruginosa membranes upon incubation with polymyxin B-loaded liposomes
[26]. Membrane fusion between liposomes and bacteria is a
rapid and spontaneous process driven by non-covalent forces
such as van der Waals force and hydrophobic interactions
that minimize the systems free energy. Antibiotic efflux is a
widely accepted mechanism of microbial drug resistance, in
which proteinaceous transports located in bacterial membranes preferentially pump antimicrobial drugs out of the
cells [27]. When liposomes fuse with cell membranes, a high
dosage of drug contents is immediately delivered to the bacteria, which can potentially suppress the antimicrobial resistance of the bacteria by overwhelming the efflux pumps,
thereby improving drugs antimicrobial activity.
Many other liposome-based antimicrobial drug delivery
systems have also been developed for various applications
[28]. Ampicillin-loaded liposomes have shown elevated drug
stability and higher antimicrobial activity than free drug
against Salmonella typhimurium [29, 30]. Benzyl penicillinloaded liposomes have shown complete growth inhibition of
penicillin-sensitive strain of Staphylococcus aureus at lower
drug concentration and shorter exposure time than free benzyl penicillin [31]. Liposomal ciprofloxacin, a fluoroquinolone antibiotic, has effectively inhibited the number of
Salmonella dublin in mouse spleen [32]. Liposomal gentamicin and streptomycin, which belong to aminogylcoside
antibiotics, have successfully treated mice and guinea pigs
infected with Brucella spp. [33]. It has also been reported
that liposomal vancomycin and teicoplaninhas have significantly enhanced intracellular killing of methicillin-resistant
Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) [34]. Table 1 summarizes
other antimicrobial liposomes, many of which have been in
clinical use for years.
POLYMERIC NANOPARTICLES FOR ANTIMICROBIAL DRUG DELIVERY
Biocompatible and biodegradable polymers have been
used extensively in the clinic for controlled drug release. The
annual worldwide market of polymer-based controlled release systems is about $60 billion and they are given to over
100 million patients each year [35]. The first polymer-based
drug delivery system was developed by Langer and Folkman
in 1976 for macromolecule delivery[36]. However, the initial
polymeric nanoparticles possessed poor therapeutic efficacy
because of their rapid clearance by the reticuloendothelial
system (RES) after intravenous administration. This limita-

588 Current Medicinal Chemistry, 2010 Vol. 17, No. 6

Table 1.

Zhang et al.

Liposomes for Antimicrobial Drug Delivery

Formulation

Drug

Targeted Microorganism

Activity

References

hydrogenated soy phosphatidylcholine,

cholesterol, and
distearoylphosphatidylglycerol (DSPG)

amphotericin B

Aspergillus fumigatus

targeted drug delivery at infection site

[73]

1,2-dipalmitoyl-sn-glycero-3phosphocholine (DPPC) and cholesterol

polymyxin B

Pseudomonas aeruginosa

1) decreased bacteria count in lung

2) increased bioavailability
3) decreased lung injury caused by bacteria

[74]

soybean phosphatidylcholine (PC) and

cholesterol

ampillicin

Micrococcus Luteus and

Salmonella typhimurium

1) increased stability
2) full biological activity of Ampicillin was
observed

[29]

dipalmitoyl-phosphatidylcholine,
dipalmitoyl-phosphatidylglycerol, and
cholesterol

ciprofloxacin

Salmonella dublin

1) decreased motality of animals

2) distribution of liposomes to all areas of
infection

[32]

dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine (DPPC),
cholesterol, and dimethylammonium
ethane carbamoyl cholesterol (DC-chol)

benzyl penicillin

Staphylococcus aureus

lower drug concentrations and shorter time

of exposure were required

[31]

phosphatidylcholine, cholesterol, and

phosphatidylinositol

netilmicin

Bacillus subtilis and

Escherichia coli

1) reduction in toxicity
2) increased circulation half-life
3) increased survival rate of animal model

[75]

partially hydrogenated
egg phosphatidylcholine (PHEPC),
cholesterol, and 1,2-distearoylsn-glycero-3-phosphoethanolamine-N(polyethylene glycol-2000) (PEGDSPE)

gentamicin

Klebsiella pneumoniae

1) increased survival rate of animal model

2) increased therapeutic efficacy

[76]

phosphatidyl glycerol, phosphatidyl

choline, and cholesterol

streptomycin

Mycobacterium avium

increased antimicrobial activity

[77]

hydrogenated soy phosphatidylcholine,

cholesterol, and
distearoylphosphatidylglycerol (DSPG)

amikacin

gram-negative bacteria

prolonged drug and exposure

[78]

stearylamine (SA) and dicetyl phosphate

zidovudine

Human immunodeficiency
virus

enhanced targeting of ZDV to lymphatics

[79]

egg phosphatidylcholine,
diacetylphosphate, and cholesterol

vancomycin or
teicoplanin

methicillin-resistant
Staphylococcus aureus
(MRSA)

1) enhanced each drug uptake by

macrophages
2) enhanced intracellular antimicrobial
effect of each drug

[34]

tion was overcome after the discovery of long-circulating

stealth polymeric nanoparticles in 1994 [37].
Polymeric nanoparticles possess several unique characteristics for antimicrobial drug delivery. Firstly, polymeric
nanoparticles are structurally stable and can be synthesized
with a sharper size distribution. Secondly, particle properties
such as size, zeta potentials, and drug release profiles can be
precisely tuned by selecting different polymer lengths, surfactants, and organic solvents during the synthesis. Thirdly,
the surface of polymeric nanoparticles typically contains
functional groups that can be chemically modified with either drug moieties or targeting ligands. For targeted antimicrobial delivery, polymeric nanoparticles have been frequently decorated with lectin, which is a protein that binds to
simple or complex carbohydrates present on most bacterial
cell walls. For example, lectin-conjugated gliadin nanoparticles were studied for treating Helicobacter pylori associated
infection diseases. It has been found that lectin-conjugated
nanoparticles bind specifically to carbohydrate receptors on
cell walls of H. pylori and release antimicrobial agents into
the bacteria [38].
There are currently two major types of polymeric
nanoparticles for antimicrobial drug delivery. One is formed
via spontaneous self-assembly of diblock copolymers con-

sisting of hydrophilic and hydrophobic segments. The hydrophobic segment forms a polymeric core containing the
drugs while the hydrophilic segment shields the core from
osponization and degradation. The rate of drug release can
be tuned by varying the length of the hydrophobic chain. A
variety of biodegradable polymers have been used to form
the hydrophobic polymeric core, including poly(lactic acid)
(PLA), poly(glycolic acid) (PGA), poly(lactide-co-glycolide)
(PLGA), poly (
-carprolactone) (PCL), and poly(cyanoacrylate) (PCA), whereas polyethylene glycol (PEG) has
been commonly used as a hydrophilic segment. Diblock copolymer nanoparticles are typically prepared through solvent
displacement. In this process, polymers and drugs are first
dissolved in a water-miscible organic solvent such as acetonitrile. The polymer-drug mixture is then added to an aqueous solution. As the organic solvent evaporates, the block
copolymers and drugs undergo nanoprecipitation to form
nanoparticles consisting of a hydrophobic core and a hydrophilic shell. Polymeric nanoparticles are primarily used to
carry and deliver poorly water soluble drugs because of the
hydrophobic nature of the nanoparticle core [39, 40].
The other type of polymeric nanoparticles consists of linear polymers such as polyalkyl acrylates and polymethyl
methacrylate that form nanocapsules through an emulsion
polymerization method. In this process, monomers are first

Nanotech Antimicrobials

Current Medicinal Chemistry, 2010 Vol. 17, No. 6

dissolved in polymerization media in the presence of surfactants. Polymerization initiators are then added to the solution
to trigger polymerization resulting in the formation of nanocapsules. Antimicrobial drugs can be either absorbed to the
nanocapsules during the polymerization process or covalently conjugated to the surface of the nanoparticles after
they are formed. The absorption process favors hydrophobic
drugs as it requires dissolving the drugs to an oil phase. Hydrophilic drugs are usually attached to the particle through
covalent conjugations. It is worth noting that in the case of
covalent linkage, antimicrobials can be inactivated and need
to be verified of their activity before use. For instance, in a
study on treating staphylococcal infections, Abeylath et al.
have observed that -lactam and ciprofloxacin retained their
potency whereas penicillin was inactivated upon covalent
attachment to nanoparticles [41].
Polymeric nanoparticles have been explored to deliver a
variety of antimicrobial agents to treat various infectious
diseases and have shown great therapeutic efficacy. For example, the antimicrobial activity of amphotericin B-loaded
poly(
-caprolactone) nanospheres coated with non ionic surfactant poloxamer 188 have shown greater therapeutic efficacy against Leishmania donovanihas compared to the free
drug counterparts [42]. Rifampicin-loaded polybutylcyanoacrylate nanoparticles have shown enhanced antibacterial
activity both in vitro and in vivo against Staphylococcus
aureus and Mycobacterium avium due to an effective delivery of drugs to macrophages [43]. In another example, ampicillin-encapsulated polyisohexylcyanoacrylate nanoparticles have been studied against Listeria monocytogenesin
Table 2.

589

mouse peritoneal macrophages [44]. Other examples of polymeric nanoparticles for antimicrobial drug delivery are
summarized in Table 2.
SOLID LIPID NANOPARTICLES FOR ANTIMICROBIAL DRUG DELIVERY
Solid lipid nanoparticles (SLNs) are another antimicrobial drug delivery platform that has attracted much attention
since 1990s. SLNs are typically particulate systems with
mean diameters ranging from 50 nm up to 1000 nm for various drug delivery applications [45]. SLNs are mainly comprised of lipids that are in solid phase at the room temperature and surfactants for emulsification. Solid lipids utilized in
SLN formulations include fatty acids (e.g. palmitic acid,
decanoic acid, and behenic acid), triglycerides (e.g. trilaurin,
trimyristin, and tripalmitin), steroids (e.g. cholesterol), partial glycerides (e.g. glyceryl monostearate and gylceryl behenate) and waxes (e.g. cetyl palmitate). Several types of
surfactants are commonly used as emulsifiers to stabilize
lipid dispersion, including soybean lecithin, phosphatidylcholine, poloxamer 188, sodium cholate, and sodium glycocholate. The typical methods of preparing SLNs include
spray drying [46], high shear mixing, ultra-sonication [47],
and high pressure homogenization (HPH) [48].
Several unique properties of SLNs make them a promising antimicrobial drug delivery platform, leading to a few
cosmetic and pharmaceutical products for skin care applications. Firstly, SLNs contain occlusive excipients that, upon
application on skin, readily form a thin film to reduce water

Polymeric Nanoparticles for Antimicrobial Drug Delivery

Formulation

Drug

Targeted
Microorganism

Activity

References

Poly (D,L-lactide) (PLA) Nanospheres

arjunglucoside

Leishmania donovani

reduced toxicity

[80]

Poly lactic-co-glycolic acid (PLGA)

nanoparticles

Phosphorothioate
antisense oligonucleotide

HIV

Protection of oligonucleotides from

degradation

[81]

Poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO)-modified

poly(epsilon-carprolactone) (PCL)
nanoparticle

saquinavir

HIV

1) Protect the drug from cytochrome

C metaboish

[82]

Alginate nanoparticle

Rifampicin, isoniazid,
pyrazinamide, and
ethambutol.

Mycobacterium
Turberculosis

Poly-lactide-co-glycolide (PLG)
nanoparticle

Rifampicin, isoniazid,
pyrazinamide, and
ethambutol.

Mycobacterium
Turberculosis

1) Enhanced bioavailability

Poloxamer 188 coated poly(epsiloncaprolactone) (PCL) nanosphere

Amphotericin B.

Candida albicans

Lower in vivo toxicity due to reduced

accumulation in kidney and liver

[85]

Polyethylene glycol (PEG)-PLA

nanocapsule

halofantrine

Plasmodiumberghe

Prolonged circulation half-life

[86]

Poly (isohexylcyanoacrylate) (PIHCA)

nanospheres

primaquine and ampicillin

Leishmania donovani,
Salmonella typhymurium
and Listeria
monocytogenes

Particle itself exhibits antimicrobial

activity

[87, 88]

Glycosylated polyacrylate nanoparticle

Beta-lactam/ciprofloxacin

Staphylococcus aureus
and Bacillus anthracis

1) Improved bioavailability

[41, 89]

2) bypass P-gp efflux pump.

1) High drug payload

[83]

2) Improved pharmacokinetic
3) High therapeutic efficacy
[84]

2) Improvied pharmacodynamic

2) Higher therapeutic efficacy

590 Current Medicinal Chemistry, 2010 Vol. 17, No. 6

Zhang et al.

evaporation and retain skin moisture. This occlusive property

promotes molecule penetrations into the skin. For instance,
SLNs encapsulated antimicrobial agents such as retinol and
retinyl palmitate have shown better drug penetration rate and
slower drug expulsion than the free drug counterparts [49].
Secondly, SLNs are stable in water and dermal cream and
therefore can be readily incorporated into cosmetic and skin
care products [50]. Lastly, simple manufacturing techniques
such as high pressure homogenization make it possible to
produce SLNs in a large-scale and reproducible manner.
Moreover, the preparation of SLNs does not require any organic solvents, which could be difficult to remove after
nanoparticle synthesis.
SLNs are ideal for topical application as their occlusive
property can induce film formation and prolong residence
time on the stratum corneum [51, 52]. One application of
SLNs is delivering azole antifungal drugs to superficial fungal infection patients. Commonly used azole antifungal family drugs such as clotrimazole, miconazole, econazole, oxiconazole and tioconazoleare are extremely water-insoluble
[53]. It is therefore difficult to administer and deliver these
drugs to infected sites. However, these lipophilic compounds
can be efficiently encapsulated into SLNs. The occlusive
effect of SLNs, together with its small particle size, can extend drug residence time on the epidermis and enhance drug
penetration through the skin [54]. The advantages of using
SLNs to deliver antifungal agents to superficial infections
have been well documented. It has been reported that econazole nitrate-loaded SLNs with a diameter of about 150 nm
have increased drug diffusion rate into deeper skin layer
[55]. Another study has demonstrated that clotrimazole- and
ketoconazoleare-loaded SLNs have high drug loading yield,
long and sustained drug release profile, and significant physicochemical stability [56].

Table 3.

In addition to topical applications, SLNs in the forms of

tablets, capsules and pellets can also be used for oral administration[57]. Tobramycin is an orally administered antimicrobial drug against Pseudomonas aeruginosa infections
commonly parasitizing in the gastrointestinal tracts of cystic
fibrosis (CF) patients [58]. The absorption rate of tobramycin
by the intestinal cells is poor because P-glycoproteins (P-gp),
an ATP-dependent drug efflux pump, on the brush border of
small intestine actively export the drugs from the cells. In
contrast, tobramycin-loaded SLNs can significantly suppress
the P-gp efflux pump as they penetrate the intestinal linings
through endocytosis rather than passive diffusion [59]. After
being internalized through endocytosis, SLNs are carried
away from the transmembrane drug-efflux pumps and release tobramycin payloads inside the cells. The drugs are
thus more likely to take effects on the bacteria rather than
being excreted out of the cells.
Another prominent example of SLNs-based drug delivery
is pulmonary delivery of antimicrobials to treat tuberculosis,
a serious lung infection caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis. In some severe cases, tuberculosis infection spreads from
the lungs and affects the lymphatic systems. SLNs can facilitate the delivery of anti-tuberculosis drugs such as rifampin,
isoniazidand pyrazinamide to the lungs as well as to the
lymphatic systems [60]. Once these SLNs enter the lungs,
they are phagocytosed by alveolar macrophages and subsequently transported to the lymphoid tissues [61]. SLN translocation mechanism and biodistribution through pulmonary
delivery have been investigated using radio-labeled aerosol
SLNs in rats. Effective uptake of radio-labeled SLNs by the
lungs after inhalation and considerable particle accumulation
in the periaortic, axillary, and inguinal lymph nodes have
been observed. The SLNs can provide a sustained release of
the carried antimicrobial payloads, which then can effec-

Solid Lipid Nanoparticles (SLNs) for Antimicrobial Drug Delivery

Formulation

Drug

Targeted Microorganism

Activity

References

stearic acid

rifampicin, isoniazid,
pyrazinamide

Mycobacterium tuberculosis

1) increased residence time

2) increased drug bioavailability
3) decreased administration frequency

[60]

stearic acid , soya

phosphatidylcholine, and sodium
taurocholate

ciprofloxacin
hydrochloride

gram-negative bacteria, grampositive bacteria, and

mycoplasma

prolonged drug release

[90]

stearic acid , soya

phosphatidylcholine, and sodium
taurocholate

tobramycin

Pseudomonas aeruginosa

increased drug bioavailability

[91]

glyceryl tripalmitate and tyloxapol

clotrimazole

fungi ( e.g. yeast, aspergilli,

dermatophytes)

1) prolonged drug release

2) high physical stability
3) high encapsulation efficiency

[92]

glyceryl behenate and sodium

deoxycholate

ketoconazol

fungi

1) high physical stability

2) chemical instability when exposed
to light

[93]

glyceryl behenate, propylene glycol,

tween 80, and glyceryl monostearate

miconazole nitrate

fungi

1) high physical stability

2) high encapsulation efficiency
3) enhanced skin targeting effect

[94]

glycerol palmitostearate

econazole nitrate

fungi

1) high encapsulation efficiency

2) controlled drug release profile
3) enhanced drug penetration through
stratum corneum

[55]

Nanotech Antimicrobials

Current Medicinal Chemistry, 2010 Vol. 17, No. 6

tively eliminate the infectious microbes harbored at these

lymphatic sites [62].
Even though the development history of SLN-based antimicrobial drug delivery systems is relatively shorter than
other nanoparticle systems such as liposomes and polymeric
nanoparticles, SLNs have shown great therapeutic potentials.
More examples of SLN-based antimicrobial drug delivery
are summarized in Table 3.
DENDRIMERS
DELIVERY

FOR

ANTIMICROBIAL

DRUG

Dendrimers are defined as highly ordered and regularly

branched globular macromolecules produced by stepwise
iterative approaches. The structure of dendrimers consists of
three distinct architectural regions: a focal moiety or a core,
layers of branched repeat units emerging from the core, and
functional end groups on the outer layer of repeat units [63].
In 1978, the first iterative cascade synthetic procedure for
branched amines was discovered by Vgtle et al. [64]. A few
years later, highly branched l-lysine-based dendrimers were
patented [65]. In 1984, Tomalia et al. reported the synthesis
and characterization of the first family of polyamidoamine
(PAMAM) dendrimers, which has become one of the most
popular dendrimers since then [66].
Two synthetic approaches, divergent and convergent approaches, have been developed to synthesize dendritic systems for delivering various types of drugs. The divergent
approach initiates the synthesis from a core and emanates
outward through a repetition of coupling and activation
steps. During the first coupling reaction, the peripheral functional groups of the core react with the complementary reactive groups to form new latent branch points at the coupling
sites and increase the number of peripheral functional
groups. These latent functional groups are then activated to
couple with additional monomers. The activation of the latent functional groups can be achieved by removal of protecting groups, coupling with secondary molecules, or reactive functionalization. Large excess of reagents is required to
drive the activation step to completion. The final resulted
dendrimer products can be separated from the excess reagents by distillation, precipitation or ultrafiltration. Although
Table 4.

591

the divergent approach is ideal for large-scale production,

incomplete functionalization or side reactions can occur
when the number of generation increases. These flawed dendrimers are usually difficult to be separated from the final
products because of structural similarity [67]. In contrast, the
convergent approach initiates the synthesis from the periphery and progresses inward. This approach starts with coupling end groups to each branch of the monomer, followed
by the activation of a single functional group located at the
focal point of the first wedge-shape dendritic fragment or
dendron. Higher generation dendron is synthesized by the
coupling of the activated dendron to an additional monomer.
After repetition of coupling and activation step, a globular
dendrimer is formed by attaching a number of dendrons to a
polyfunctional core. Dendrimers thus synthesized can be
effectively purified. However, synthesis of large dendrimers
above the sixth generation is difficult [63].
Dendrimers possess several unique properties that make
them a good nanoparticle platform for antimicrobial drug
delivery. The highly-branched nature of dendrimers provides
enormous surface area to size ratio and allows great reactivity with microorganisms in vivo. In addition, both hydrophobic and hydrophilic agents can be loaded into dendrimers.
Hydrophobic drugs can be loaded inside the cavity in the
hydrophobic core, and hydrophilic drugs can be attached to
the multivalent surfaces of dendrimers through covalent conjugation or electrostatic interaction [68, 69]. Moreover, by
using antimicrobial drugs as a building block, the synthesized dendrimers themselves can become a potent antimicrobial. Dendrimer biocides are such example that contains quaternary ammonium salts as functional end groups. Quaternary ammonium compounds (QACs) are antimicrobial
agents that disrupt bacterial membranes. Dendrimer biocides
have displayed greater antimicrobial activity against target
bacteria than small drug molecules because of a high density
of active antimicrobials present on the dendrimer surfaces.
The polycationic structure of dendrimer biocides facilitates
the initial electrostatic adsorption to negatively charged bacteria. The absorption then increases membrane permeability
and allows more dendrimers for entering the bacteria, leading to leakage of potassium ions and eventually complete
disintegration of the bacterial membrane [70].

Dendrimers for Antimicrobial Drug Delivery

Formulations

Drug

Targeted Microorganisms

Activity

References

Polyamidoamine
(PAMAM) dendrimers

Nadifloxacin and
prulifloxacin

Various bacteria

Improved water solubility

[95]

Niclosmide

Tapeworm

1)Improved water solubility

[96]

2) Controllable drug release

Silver salts

Sulfamethoxazole

Pegylated lysine based

copolymeric dendrimer

Artemether

Gram-positive bacteria(Staphylococcus
aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa,
andEscherichia coli)

1)High payload

Strep throat (streptococcus), staph infection

(staphylococcus aureus), and flu
(Haemophilus influenza).

1)Sustained drug release

Plasmodium falciparum

1) Increased drug stability

[71]

2)Prolonged circulation half-life

[41]

2)Increased antibacterial activity

2) enhanced solubility
3) Prolonged drug circulation half-life

[97]

592 Current Medicinal Chemistry, 2010 Vol. 17, No. 6

PAMAM is one of the most studied dendrimers for antimicrobial delivery because of its higher density of functional groups, which make the dendrimer more hydrophilic
and more readily reactive to antimicrobial conjugation. Silver salts loaded PAMAM dendrimers have demonstrated
significant antimicrobial activity against Staphylococcus
aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Escherichia coli [71].
Incorporation of antibacterial agents such assulfamethoxazole (SMZ) into the ethylenediamine (EDA) core of
PAMAM dendrimers has significantly improved the drugs
aqueous solubility and antibacterial activity against E. coli
[72]. Many other antimicrobial drugs have been successfully
loaded into dendrimer nanoparticles and have shown improved solubility and therapeutic efficacy. Table 4 summarizes more dendrimer-based antibacterial drug delivery systems.
CONCLUSIONS
In summary, many antimicrobial drugs are difficult to
administer because of their low water-solubility, cytotoxicity
to healthy tissues, and rapid degradation and clearance in the
blood stream. Their antimicrobial activities against intracellular microbes are also severely limited by poor membrane
transport ability. Extensive studies have demonstrated that
nanoparticles such as liposomes, polymeric nanoparticles,
solid lipid nanoparticles and dendrimers are able to overcome these issues and facilitate antimicrobial delivery to
microbial infection sites. While most of these nanoparticlebased antimicrobial drug delivery systems are currently in
preclinical development, several have been approved for
clinical use. With the ongoing efforts in this field, there is no
doubt that nanoparticle-based drug delivery systems will
continue to improve treatment to bacterial infections, especially in life-threatening diseases such as staph infections
and tuberculosis.

Zhang et al.

sues. Potential drug-release triggers include pH value, enzyme and other unique characters of the infection microenvironment. Lastly, few of the current nanoparticle-based antimicrobial drug delivery systems can distinguish microbes
or infectious cells from healthy cells due to the lack of the
specific targeting ability, although targeted drug delivery has
been extensively studied for other disease treatment such as
cancers and cardiovascular diseases. It would be beneficial
for infection treatment if antimicrobial nanoparticles could
be modified with microbe antigen- or infectious cell antigenspecific ligands including antibodies, antibody fragments,
aptamers and peptides.
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Received: October 28, 2009

Revised: January 05, 2010

Accepted: January 06, 2010

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