{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,29]],"date-time":"2026-09-29T17:14:45Z","timestamp":1790702085075,"version":"4.1.0"},"reference-count":27,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"9","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2023,9,13]],"date-time":"2023-09-13T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1694563200000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"PRIN2017 (Progetti di Rilevante Interesse Nazionale)","award":["20173ZECCM"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["20173ZECCM"]}]},{"name":"PRIN2017 (Progetti di Rilevante Interesse Nazionale)","award":["DM1062\/2021"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["DM1062\/2021"]}]},{"name":"EU FSE-REACT PON Research and Innovation 2014\u20132020","award":["20173ZECCM"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["20173ZECCM"]}]},{"name":"EU FSE-REACT PON Research and Innovation 2014\u20132020","award":["DM1062\/2021"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["DM1062\/2021"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Pharmaceutics"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Applying a formulation on the skin represents a patient-acceptable and therapeutically effective way to administer drugs locally and systemically. However, the stratum corneum stands as an impermeable barrier that only allows a very limited number of drugs to be distributed in the underlying tissues, limiting the feasibility of this administration route. Microneedle arrays are minimally invasive platforms that allow the delivery of drugs within\/across the skin through the temporary mechanical disruption of the stratum corneum. In this work, microneedle arrays were combined with nanosuspensions, a technology for solubility enhancement of water insoluble molecules, for the skin delivery of diclofenac. Nanosuspensions were prepared using a top-down method and loaded in the tips of 500 \u00b5m or 800 \u00b5m high microneedles. The quality of the combined platform was assessed using electron microscopy and spectroscopic and calorimetry techniques, demonstrating the ability to load high amounts of the hydrophobic drug and the compatibility between excipients. Lastly, the application of nanosuspension-loaded microneedles on the skin in vitro allowed the delivery of diclofenac within and across the stratum corneum, proving the potential of this combination to enhance skin delivery of scarcely soluble drugs.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/pharmaceutics15092308","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2023,9,13]],"date-time":"2023-09-13T05:08:21Z","timestamp":1694581701000},"page":"2308","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":22,"title":["Nanosuspension-Based Dissolvable Microneedle Arrays to Enhance Diclofenac Skin Delivery"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"15","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-9508-7222","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Luca","family":"Casula","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Dipartimento di Scienze della Vita e dell\u2019Ambiente, Sezione di Scienze del Farmaco, CNBS, Universit\u00e0 degli Studi di Cagliari, 09124 Cagliari, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Rosa","family":"Pireddu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Dipartimento di Scienze della Vita e dell\u2019Ambiente, Sezione di Scienze del Farmaco, CNBS, Universit\u00e0 degli Studi di Cagliari, 09124 Cagliari, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-2788-7823","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Maria Cristina","family":"Cardia","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Dipartimento di Scienze della Vita e dell\u2019Ambiente, Sezione di Scienze del Farmaco, CNBS, Universit\u00e0 degli Studi di Cagliari, 09124 Cagliari, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-0554-566X","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Elena","family":"Pini","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, General and Organic Chemistry Section \u201cAlessandro Marchesini\u201d, University of Milan, 20133 Milan, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Donatella","family":"Valenti","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Dipartimento di Scienze della Vita e dell\u2019Ambiente, Sezione di Scienze del Farmaco, CNBS, Universit\u00e0 degli Studi di Cagliari, 09124 Cagliari, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-7214-9045","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Michele","family":"Schlich","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Dipartimento di Scienze della Vita e dell\u2019Ambiente, Sezione di Scienze del Farmaco, CNBS, Universit\u00e0 degli Studi di Cagliari, 09124 Cagliari, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-8383-5895","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Chiara","family":"Sinico","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Dipartimento di Scienze della Vita e dell\u2019Ambiente, Sezione di Scienze del Farmaco, CNBS, Universit\u00e0 degli Studi di Cagliari, 09124 Cagliari, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Salvatore","family":"Marceddu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Istituto di Scienze delle Produzioni Alimentari (ISPA)\u2014CNR, Sez. di Sassari, 07040 Baldinca, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Nina","family":"Dragi\u0107evi\u0107","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Pharmacy, Singidunum University, 11107 Belgrade, Serbia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-9848-0556","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Anna Maria","family":"Fadda","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Dipartimento di Scienze della Vita e dell\u2019Ambiente, Sezione di Scienze del Farmaco, CNBS, Universit\u00e0 degli Studi di Cagliari, 09124 Cagliari, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Francesco","family":"Lai","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Dipartimento di Scienze della Vita e dell\u2019Ambiente, Sezione di Scienze del Farmaco, CNBS, Universit\u00e0 degli Studi di Cagliari, 09124 Cagliari, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2023,9,13]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"723","DOI":"10.1517\/14712598.2.7.723","article-title":"Drug delivery across the skin","volume":"2","author":"Touitou","year":"2005","journal-title":"Expert Opin. 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