ABSTRACT
Transport of the drug through skin is best route of drug delivery because of the skin is largest organ human organ with total weight 3 kg and a surface of 1.5 -2.0 m2. Drug carries used in transdermal drug delivery such as liposomes, noisomes, or microemulsions has problem that they remains mostly confined to the skin surface and therefore do not transport drugs efficiently through the skin. By using the concept of rational membrane design we have recently devised special composite bodies, so-called Transfersomes. Transfersomes penetrate through the pores of stratum corneum which are smaller than its size and get into the underlying viable skin in intact form. This is because of its deformable nature. The system can be characterized by in vitro for vesicle shape and size, entrapment efficiency, degree of deformability, number of vesicles per cubic mm. They can act as a carrier for low as well as high molecular weight drugs e.g. analgesic, anesthetic, corticosteroids, sex hormone, anticancer, insulin, gap junction protein, and albumin.
ABSTRACT
Transdermal drug delivery system was first introduced more than 30 years ago. The technology generated tremendous excitement and interest amongst major pharmaceutical companies in the 1980s and 90s. By the mid to late 1990s, the trend of transdermal drug delivery system merged into larger organizations. Ethosomes are the ethanolic phospholipid vesicles which are used mainly for transdermal delivery of drugs. Ethosomes have higher penetration rate through the skin as compared to liposomes hence these can be used widely in place of liposomes. Ethosomes have become an area of research interest, because of its enhanced skin permeation, improved drug delivery, increased drug entrapment efficiency etc. The purpose of writing this review on ethosomes drug delivery was to compile the focus on the various aspects of ethosomes including their mechanism of penetration, preparation, advantages, composition, characterization, application and marketed product of ethosomes. Characterizations of ethosomes include Particle size, Zeta potential, Differential Scanning Calorimertry, Entrapment efficiency, Surface tension activity measurement, Vesicle stability and Penetration Studies etc.