Current Nanotechnological Approaches for an Effective Delivery of Bioactive Drug Molecules to Overcome Drug Resistance Tuberculosis.

Tuberculosis (TB) is an airborne communicable disease, mainly caused by aerobic, non-motile, rodshaped, weakly gram-positive, acid-fast tubercular bacillus Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTb). Mycobacterium has worsened the problem in humans by acquiring various types of resistances like Multi-drug resistance (MDR), Single-drug resistance (SDR), and Extensive drug resistance (XDR). Some clinical problems and challenges associated with conventional TB chemotherapy include poor patient compliance, longer duration of chemotherapy, lesser cell permeability, primary drug resistance, difficulty in maintaining higher drug concentrations at the infected site, and degradation of the drug before reaching the target site. Thus, newer micrometric or nanometric carriers drug delivery approaches are needed. Colloidal (vesicular and particulate) drug carriers offer numerous advantages over conventional therapy such as better systemic bioavailability, rapid onset of therapeutic action, avoidance of first-pass metabolism, providing sustained and controlled release, fewer dosing frequencies, desired pharmacokinetic prole and route of administration. This review article present updates and fabrication of drug delivery approaches for tuberculosis chemotherapy in order to improve patient compliance.

Efficacy study of vesicular gel containing methotrexate and menthol combination on parakeratotic rat skin model.

Methotrexate (MTX) is indicated in the symptomatic control of severe, recalcitrant, and disabling psoriasis. The oral or parenteral route of administration causes systemic toxicity. The topical route of delivery, though, reduces systemic toxicity and has limited applicability due to restricted permeability. Liposomal and niosomal MTX topical formulations have also been investigated with limited success to achieve drug localization in the skin. Menthol has been suggested in conditions of psoriasis, in addition to its skin-penetration-enhancing effect on drugs. The present work aimed at investigating the potential benefits of combining menthol with MTX in a vesicular gel base for not only improving the penetration and dermal availability of MTX, but also to render such a formulation more effective with greater patient acceptability. MTX liposomes were prepared by thin-film hydration, and the vesicles were characterized for drug-entrapment efficiency, size, and morphology. These liposomal vesicles were incorporated in a gel base, and this vesicular gel was evaluated for transdermal drug permeation and extent of drug accumulation in the skin, using a rat skin ex vivo model. Skin histology studies were carried out to investigate any structural changes caused by the permeation enhancers. Antipsoriatic efficacy of the formulations was tested in vivo, using the rat tail model. The results indicated that the vesicular gel containing menthol could cause maximum drug retention in the skin. The skin treated with menthol had a disrupted epidermis and microcavities. The in vivo studies also ascertained the effectiveness of the formulation in inducing a normal pattern of differentiation in the rat tail skin that initially showed parakeratosis, which is also characteristic of psoriatic epidermis. These results show the potential of vesicular gel containing MTX and menthol to improve penetration into the skin and cause drug retention in skin appendages.

Role of calcium in gene delivery.

The treatment of genetic diseases using therapeutic gene transfer is considered to be a significant development. This development has brought with it certain limitations, and the process of overcoming these barriers has seen a drastic change in gene delivery. Many metal ions such as Mg2+, Mn2+, Ba2+ and, most importantly, Ca2+ have been demonstrated to have significant roles in gene delivery. Recently, calcium phosphate alone, or in combination with viral and nonviral vectors, was found to exert a positive effect on gene transfer when incorporated in the colloidal particulate system, which is an advancing approach to gene delivery. This review elaborates on various successful methods of using calcium in gene delivery.