Anti-asthmatic biomaterials: Excipient-co-therapeutic for pulmonary asthma medicine development

Excipients could modulate drug delivery profiles of pulmonary medicine. This review explores potential bioactive excipients for asthma medicine development which could serve as therapeutic as well as drug carrier. Polysaccharides and oligo derivatives, and synthetic and coordination polymers could curb asthma through mitigating allergic and inflammatory responses of respiratory cells via inhibiting T-helper cell maturation, cytokines and IgE release, mast cell degranulation and MAPK/NF-kβ signaling pathways by binding to Toll like/CR3/dectin-1/mannose receptors of immune/epithelial cells. They can remove allergens via complexation, reduce mucus production by goblet cells, fluidize respiratory mucus and enlarge mucus pores to ease allergen removal or cellular drug uptake. Polymers < 1600 kDa and specifically < 10 kDa possess anti-asthmatic effects. Sugar moieties of excipients exert immuno-modulatory actions via specific lung epithelial and immune cell receptor binding as a function of branching/esterification degree, chemical bond saturation, glycosidic linkage and graft characteristics. To materialize anti-asthmatic excipients in pulmonary medicine development, efficient purification and clinical safety evaluation are imperative. To exploit such excipients as pulmonary therapeutic and/or drug carrier, particle design of excipients into required aerodynamic diameter and targeting behaviour is essential. Polysaccharides and oligo derivatives, and synthetic and coordination polymers are potential anti-asthmatic therapeutics and alternative drug carriers to the existing inhalable lactose.