Nasal drug delivery
The nasal route provides a simple yet highly effective means for delivering drugs and vaccines, and an increasing number of pharmaceutical companies are recognizing the value of nasal distribution or nasal administration. However, the intricate anatomy and physiology of the nose means that current administration methods such as sprays, drops, powders, and gels only tap into a fraction of its capabilities, despite extensive research aimed at improving these methods.
The nose - an easy gateway
Nasal drug delivery offers ease of use and improved patient compliance. It does not require special training or medical personnel for administration, and patients can self-administer medications. Nasal drug delivery is a non-invasive route that doesn't require needles or injections, making it more convenient and less painful for patients. Nasal administration is particularly beneficial, compared to oral intake, for people who have difficulty swallowing, are uncooperative or unconscious, or those who may experience gastrointestinal problems.
Effective and consistent absorption over time
Absorption of substances on the nasal mucosa is a rapid process. The nasal cavity is rich in blood vessels, providing a highly vascularized area for drug absorption. This enables rapid and efficient absorption of drugs into the bloodstream, leading to a faster onset of action compared to oral administration. Administering drugs through the nasal mucosa also enables consistent drug intake, which is desirable in many cases to avoid so-called drug concentration spikes.
When drugs are administered orally, they pass through the gastrointestinal tract and liver before reaching systemic circulation. This can result in significant metabolism and breakdown of the drug, reducing its bioavailability. Nasal drug delivery bypasses the liver, avoids first-pass metabolism and allows a higher proportion of the drug to reach systemic circulation.
Unique Access for Medicines Intended for the Brain (Nose-to-Brain, N2B)
N2B drug delivery can enhance brain bioavailability, reduce enzymatic degradation, and reduce systemic adverse effects. The nasal mucosa offers a unique opportunity for drugs to reach the brain and central nervous system (CNS) quickly and safely without having to bind to receptors or take other detours in the body, with the risk of unwanted side effects, as is the case with drugs given orally, rectally, subcutaneously, intramuscularly, or intravenously.
Many drugs, even those consisting of small molecules cannot effectively cross the blood-brain barrier (BBB) or blood-cerebrospinal fluid barrier (BCSFB) but can still reach the brain via nasal administration. This is very interesting for the development of medications aimed at, for example, depression, schizophrenia, epilepsy, infections or cancer in the CNS, neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson’s, or neuro-AIDS. But also, this nasal route can also deliver proteins, hormones, anti-inflammatory and anti-migraine drugs, and pain killers to the CNS.
Nasal medicines can take advantage of the passage via both the so-called olfactory regions (where the smell receptors are located) high up in the nose and the trigeminal sensory nerve pathway to the brain with a quick impact. How extra beneficial this route is remains to be elucidated and this requires the drug to be able to reach the region, which current administration systems have difficulty doing.
General advantages of nasal drug delivery
Non-Invasive
Effective & rapid absorption
Overcome difficulty swallowing & gastro-intestinal sensitivity
Easy self-administration
Bypass hepatic & intestinal metabolism
No need for sterilization
Unique access for medicines intended for the brain (Nose-to-Brain, N2B)
General advantages of nasal vaccine delivery
Needle free
Improved vaccine staibility
Both mucosal &
systemic immune response
Faster immune response
Health care independent
& self administration
Creates cross protection
Nasal vaccine delivery
Vaccination usually means a method of creating protection against a disease by injecting a substance (vaccine) that activates the body's immune system against the pathogenic (disease-causing) factor, which can be viruses, bacteria, or parasites. In traditional vaccination, injection with a syringe is used in the skin, just under the skin or in muscle tissue. Some people, especially children and young adults, experience this as unpleasant and therefore avoid vaccination.
Most vaccines intended for injection need to be stored and transported in the cold, which entails high costs and is a clear environmental disadvantage. There is also a risk of needles getting mixed up between patients. Needle-free nasal vaccination systems can reduce the risk of injury and cross-contamination with pathogens, such as HIV and hepatitis B virus.
An injection may also hit a larger blood vessel or a nerve with risk of tissue damage and long-term disability. A safer, non-invasive, more sustainable, and environmentally friendly alternative is a vaccine that is applied in the nose instead without needles. In addition, the self-administration, without additional health care personal, of these nasal vaccines would be feasible, facilitating the quick immunization of the community, especially in the case of pandemics, where rapid and mass vaccination is required.
Utilize the entire immune system with rapid response
Parenteral vaccination is the most applicable method of immunization, for the prevention of systematic and respiratory infections, or central nervous system disorders, involving T and B cells to a whole-body immune response. However, mucosal vaccines, such as nasal vaccines, can additionally activate the immune cells localized on the mucosal tissue of the upper and lower respiratory tract. This dual stimulation of the immune system, together with their needle-free administration favors the development of new nasal vaccines to produce long-lasting immunity and reduces the need for multiple vaccinations to maintain immunization, and the vaccine substance volume needed.
The induction of protective immunity for COVID-19 is a pending goal required to prevent viral transmission, prevent the generation of new variants, and ultimately eradicate SARS-CoV-2. Mucosal immunization stands as a promising approach to achieve protective immunity against SARS-CoV-2.
The mucous membrane of the nose together with the tonsils, and in children the adenoid behind the nose, contains cells that react very quickly and effectively to topically applied vaccine and thus trigger the immune system to almost 100% protection after only a few hours, which can be a decisive factor in succeeding to halt a rapidly spreading epidemic. When injecting a vaccine, only about 10% of the immune system is activated and the response takes a week or even longer, and multiple doses over time may be needed.
NosePlug® technology - targets nostril, nasal valve and Kiesselbach’s plexus
The NosePlug® is a patented polyurethane (PU) foam nasal plug that serves as an applicator for drugs, substances, vaccines, or agents. It can be used with soaked, coated, or filtered substances, as well as with facilitators like nano-gels, liposomes, bioadhesives, microspheres, or nano-emulsions. The plug can also be used for injections directly into the nasal cavity through its inner tube or by injecting substances into a multi-perforated variant of the inner tube to soak the plug.
Protected device and technology
Hogne's NosePlug® is applied in the nostril, targeting the most vascularized area of the nose. It allows for the extended administration of medications, providing an optimal and gentle surface that is comfortable for the user and the nasal mucosa.
Unlike traditional nasal medications that are quickly cleared by the natural mucosal processes, the NosePlug® utilizes targeted absorption and mucosal transport to distribute the medication throughout the nasal mucosa.
Ready for existing substances
The tool necessary for this technology, the NosePlug®, has already been developed, approved by regulatory authorities, tested in the market, and patented in valuable markets. Our approach is to utilize existing drugs and vaccines, leveraging the technology by licensing it to pharmaceutical companies. This bypasses the costly and risky process of developing new drugs or vaccines. With this proprietary technology, the delivery of nasal substances will take a significant leap forward and potentially establish a leading position in the field.
