A new microfluidic setup with impact-jet micromixers was built up and applied to control the nanoprecipitation process for generating polymeric nanoparticles and encapsulating a lipophilic drug. In contrast to a conventional nanoprecipitation processes in “bulk” phase, the microfluidic approach not only allows a continuous and controlled production of nanoparticles, but can also be used to manipulate and modify the nanoparticle size and the drug loading, by fine tuning the processing parameters. We developed a micromixer-assisted setup that can efficiently produce PMMA nanospheres, with a particle size of about 100 nm, and a narrow size distribution. Moreover, this setup enables a flow rate of the polymer phase as high as 1 mL min⁻¹, opening the possibilities of large-scale production. The obtained nanoparticles can encapsulate high levels of a lipophilic drug (ketoprofen) and release it over 4 h. Finally, the solvent and non-solvent flow rates can be used to adjust the physicochemical and encapsulating/release properties of these nanosystems, opening new possibilities for nanoparticle production by nanoprecipitation.

During the last decade, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have regulated a wide range of products, (foods, cosmetics, drugs, devices, veterinary, and tobacco) which may utilize micro and nanotechnology or contain nanomaterials. Nanotechnology allows scientists to create, explore, and manipulate materials in nano-regime. Such materials have chemical, physical, and biological properties that are quite different from their bulk counterparts. For pharmaceutical applications and in order to improve their administration (oral, pulmonary and dermal), the nanocarriers can be spread into microparticles. These supramolecular associations can also modulate the kinetic releases of drugs entrapped in the nanoparticles. Different strategies to produce these hybrid particles and to optimize the release kinetics of encapsulated drugs are discussed in this review.

Translation of nanomaterials from spherical to other shapes has demonstrated property and activity enhancement for applications ranging from optics to catalysis. Unfortunately, synthetic techniques for the controlled production of shaped nanomaterials, which can employ harsh conditions, remains challenging. In contrast, the fabrication of nanostructures using peptides has achieved the generation of functionally active materials using bio-conditions; however, these methods are typically limited to spherical materials. By merging these techniques, the biomimetic/ambient production of functional, shaped nanostructures may be achieved. Here we present the fabrication of non-spherical Pd nanostructures prepared using a peptide template. By controlling the Pd : peptide ratio, the production of at least three different Pd morphologies is possible: nanoparticles, short linear nanoribbons, and nanoparticle networks. Furthermore, all of the materials are active for Stille C-coupling catalysis using aqueous and room temperature conditions at low Pd concentrations. The results suggest that both the zerovalent Pd materials and the ligand surface structure modulate the reactivity, which may be exploitable for optimal functionality.