Delivery of liquid micro-volumes into targeted regions of the lung

The ability to deliver drugs to specific sites in the lung could radically improve therapeutic outcomes of many lung diseases, including cystic fibrosis, severe bronchopneumonia, and lung cancer. Unfortunately, conventional methods for pulmonary drug administration lack the ability for precise, localized drug delivery to target regions, and typically induce systemic side effects. Here, we describe a more controlled approach to deliver soluble drug reagents in the form of microliter-volume liquid plugs to desired lung regions via air ventilation. Using this approach, exact drug doses can be effectively delivered to the targeted pathologic lung regions to increase the drug efficacy.