Nose-to-brain delivery of lithium via a sprayable in situ-forming hydrogel composed of chelating starch nanoparticles

While bipolar disorder patients can benefit from lithium therapy, high levels of lithium in the serum can induce undesirable systemic side effects. Intranasal (IN) lithium delivery offers a potential solution to this challenge given its potential to facilitate improved lithium transport to brain when delivered to the olfactory mucosa. Herein, a sprayable, in situ forming nanoparticle network hydrogel (NNH) based on Schiff base interactions …