Abstract

PHYTOSOMES: FROM HERBAL DRUG DELIVERY TO TARGETED CLINICAL THERAPY

Arshia Berry, Thomas Charles Guest and Tanveer Naved*

Abstract

Conventional herbal extracts, despite their excellent biological activities, display poor bioavailability and poor lipid solubility, ascribing to their large molecular size and hydrophilic nature which adversely affects their therapeutic potential. This lack of bioavailability can be greatly improved by using different delivery systems, one such being the use of phytosomes. This phospholipid-based delivery system has proven to be a promising technique for delivery and enhanced efficacy of the herbal or phytochemical extracts, as well as demonstrating improved pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic profile when compared to the conventional herbal extracts. This delivery system has shown remarkable potential of herbal extract delivery, when administered orally or topically and may further be made to be used as a means of targeted intravenous cell therapy by employing the use of desired monoclonal antibodies with the standardised phytosome formulations.

Keywords: phytosomes, phosphatidylcholine, bioavailability, amphiphilic, phytoconstituents, liposomes.