LAUSR

Intravenous delivery of nanomaterials containing therapeutic agents and various cargos for treating neurological disorders is often constrained by low delivery efficacy due to difficulties in passing the blood-brain barrier (BBB). Nanoparticles (NPs) administered intranasally can move along olfactory and trigeminal nerves so that they do not need to pass through the BBB, allowing non-invasive, direct access to selective neural pathways within the brain. Hence, intranasal administration of NPs can effectively deliver drugs and genes into targeted regions of the brain, holding potential for efficacious disease treatment in the central nervous system (CNS). In this review, we primarily showcase current methods for delivering conjugated NPs to the brain. We then discuss distinctive potential mechanisms of therapeutic nanocomposites delivered via intranasal pathways to the brain. We also review recent progress in developing functional NPs for applications in multimodal bioimaging, drug delivery, diagnostics, and therapeutics. We conclude the review by discussing existing challenges, new directions and future perspectives in intranasal delivery of nanomaterials. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.