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In Chap. 13, electrospinning has been introduced as a strategy to manipulate the physical properties of a therapeutics-loaded system and to enhance the versatility of drug delivery. In the remaining chapters in Section V, the use of chemical means to manipulate the surface properties of a carrier for more effective systemic drug delivery will be discussed. As a matter of fact, a therapeutic agent must stay in the body as long as it is needed to reach the intended site of action in order to elicit a therapeutic response. To extend the blood retention time of an agent, one commonly used strategy is surface modification. In this chapter, we will first discuss the principles of clearance of particulate drug delivery systems from the body by the mononuclear phagocyte system (MPS), followed by a discussion of the possible use of polymers as modifiers of the surface properties of the particulate systems for enhanced performance in systemic drug delivery. Finally, the applications of surface-modified particulates in non-MPS targeting, including cancer chemotherapy and delivery across the blood–brain barrier, will also be discussed. |
