Intranasal delivery of chitosan-based nanoparticles as an innovative way for management of neurodegenerative disorders: A comprehensive review of advanced strategies for CNS targeting

Neurodegenerative disorders are chronic conditions related to brain malfunctions. The presence of the bloodbrain barrier creates obstacles to the management of central nervous system diseases. Conventional delivery systems and available market products show a lot of drawbacks so, fail to achieve the desired therapeutic outcomes. Therefore, it was an attractive option for scientists throughout the past years to target drugs directly to the brain without systemic exposure. Many strategies have been discussed for the effective targeting of drugs to the brain including invasive and non-invasive methods. Among these, direct nose-to-brain delivery provides an ideal way for direct brain deposition via the olfactory and trigeminal pathways. Moreover, nanoformulations also contribute to brain targeting due to their unique characteristics, especially chitosan nanoparticles (Cs-NPs). CsNPs have a cationic nature with biocompatible characteristics, antioxidant, and antimicrobial effects. Cs-NPs facilitate brain targeting through adsorptive-mediated transcytosis. In this review, the advantages of utilizing Cs-NPs with nasal delivery are discussed.