Skip to main content
. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2016 Jan 31.
Published in final edited form as: J Pharm Sci. 2014 Sep 22;104(2):362–367. doi: 10.1002/jps.24182

Figure 4.

Figure 4

Therapeutic use concept of the microneedle pill. Both hollow and solid microneedles could be used. In both cases, the pill’s needles are initially coated by a pH-responsive coating to aid in ingestion (left). When the pill has reached the desired location in the GI tract, the coating dissolves, revealing the microneedles (middle). In the case of hollow microneedles (top right), the drug reservoir is compressed through peristalsis, releasing the drug through the needles. In the case of solid microneedles (bottom right), the drug is formulated into the microneedles. The microneedles penetrate the tissue and break off of the pill, leaving the needle to release the drug in a controlled manner, based on the needle formulation.