ELECTRO-INCORPORATION OF MICROCARRIERS AS A METHOD FOR THE TRANSDERMAL DELIVERY OF LARGE MOLECULES

We describe a novel method of transdermal delivery of large molecules. In this method, the molecules are encapsulated into vesicles or microspheres, and then delivered through the stratum corneum (SC) by pulsed electric fields. The pulsed field creates pores in the SC by dielectric breakdown. The large differences in specific resistivity between the SC and the epidermis lead to high and very divergent electric fields in the pores. Such fields can provide a dielectrophoretic driving force for the particles. We present a theoretical model and evidence from in vivo experiments on mice for the electro-incorporation process.