A Brief Overview Of The Liposomal Formulation

By Kristen Baird


Among the major areas of care fixated by people is their health. As such, advances in medicines are duly welcome and highly appreciated. Progress in research of various diseases and development of drugs to help curb them is always a good indicator. One such aspect of progress has been noted in liposomal formulation.

The process of this formulation was discovered 50 years ago. It came about as a solution to a problem of drugs taken orally being exhausted and digested before reaching the intended target areas. The liposomal way was deemed best suited since it was a favorable carrier to both hydrophilic and hydrophobic drugs.

The simplicity of the liposomes' structural composition is key to its performance. They are made up of an aqueous solution which is engulfed in a strengthened mesh of either natural or synthetic phospholipids. The advantage of this is that it can fuse non-reactively with both hydrophilic and hydrophobic drugs, each attaching to the element it does not react to.

The core structure of liposomes is what causes them to be preferred among researchers of various fields and disciplines. They are formed when phospolipids are immersed in water and a specific amount of heat directed toward them. To determine if it is an appropriate carrier for a given drug, the chemical composition should be bench-marked against that of the drug, so as to avert reactions.

Advances such as these have led to further progress in the medical field. The most famous being development of Doxorubicin, a form of anthracycline. This is a drug that was developed to curb the spread of cancer. It does this in two stages, first, by inserting base stains of DNA and RNA molecules which inhibits replication of cells. The second phase is inhibition of an enzyme known as topoisomerase II, which serves the same purpose of inhibition of cellular growth.

Further research and development on cancer and other terminal ailments have had positive results, and the outcomes lauded by the medical community as well as the general public. Research and testing of liposomes as anti- cancer drug carriers has brought about drugs which are n testing. These include doxorubicin, , lipoplatin, paclitaxel, aroplatin and cisplatin.

Some diseases which were considered deadly can now be mitigated via vaccines. Research in the field of liposomes has led to development of several vaccines which can now be actively used as preventative medicine. Most however are still undergoing rigorous testing. Some of the vaccines created include Inflexal V against influenza, Epaxal for Hepatitis, and Stimuvax for cancer.

The use of liposomes as a carrier for dietary supplements is a newer idea that I undergoing further research. The idea is to use the same technique as the currently successful targeted drug delivery to deliver various supplements taken orally to specific areas in the body. This is however still undergoing research and testing. The use of liposomes in creation of various drugs and vaccines has led to a huge leap in terms of drug research and development. The process of the formulation has thus been lauded as wielding enormous potential for development of better medical solutions for a lot of persistent medical conditions.




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