Abstract

LIPOSPHERE - LIPID BASED DRUG DELIVERY SYSTEM FOR DELIVERY OF POORLY WATER SOLUBLE COMPOUNDS: A REVIEW

Mayank Saxena*

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Abstract

Researchers face difficulties in designing effective formulation and improving the bioavailability of poorly water-soluble medications to therapeutic uses. The development of new drug molecule alone is not sufficient to ensure extensive pharmacotherapy for various diseases. Due to inadequate concentrations of plasma drugs, significant results obtained from in-vitro studies are not supported by in vivo data. This can be due to the limited solubility and absorption of drugs. Developing new drug delivery systems will be a promising approach to overcome these problems. Lipid microspheres, often called lipospheres, are among the promising systems of delivering particulate drugs to improve water-insoluble drug dissolution. Lipospheres are a drug encapsulation system composed of water-dispersible small particle size microparticles of between 0.01 and 100μm in diameter with a rigid hydrophobic lipid center (triglycerides), protected by a coating of phospholipid molecules embedded in their surface. The bioactive compound dissolves or disperses within the internal core's solid lipid matrix. Since lipospheres were developed in the early 1990s, they have been used by different routes of administration for the delivery of several forms of drugs. Lipospheres have several advantages over other delivery systems, such as improved physical stability, low ingredient costs, ease of preparation and scale-up, high dispersibility in an aqueous medium, high entrapment of hydrophobic drugs, controlled particle size and extended release of trapped drugs after administration, from a few hours to several days. This review article focuses on updated information on several aspects of liposphere including liposphere formulation, factors influencing liposphere quality attribute, mechanisms behind drug loading, liposphere assessment and challenges in liposphere development are discussed in detail. Besides, this review also briefly enlisted the various applications of lipospheres in medical and biomedical fields.

Keywords: Lipid microspheres, Lipospheres, Drug delivery, Delivery approaches, Formulation techniques.