Ethosomes in Transdermal and Topical Drug Delivery: A Review

Abstract : The skin is one of the most extensive and readily accessible organs of the human body, and its use as a route for drug delivery offers numerous advantages over traditional drug delivery systems. These advantages include lower fluctuations in plasma drug levels, avoidance of gastrointestinal disturbances and first-pass metabolism, as well as improved patient compliance. Transdermal drug delivery systems (TDDS) are defined as self-contained, discrete dosage forms that, when applied to intact skin, deliver of drugs at the controlled rate to the systemic circulation Ethosomes, developed from Touitou et al. in 1997, are novel lipid carriers composed of ethanol, phospholipids and water. These ethosomes are designed as non-invasive drug carrier system that can permeate the skin, fuse with cell membrane lipids, and release the drug. Ethosomes can be formulated using either hot or cold methods. Evaluation parameters for ethosomes include size, shape, drug content and zeta potential. Ethosomes have been successfully evaluated for the delivery of various drugs, including cyclosporine a insulin and salbutamol. Overall, ethosomes hold great potential as an important drug delivery tool in the future.