Niosomes : Novel Drug Delivery Systems

Abstract

The administration of medications to specific targets with minimal affinity to other organs is a challenge during the treatment of disease conditions. Novel drug delivery systems enable localization of drugs to their site of action. These targeted drug delivery systems use various carriers, such as serum proteins, liposomes, synthetic polymers, and microspheres. Niosomes are a type of drug delivery system that has a bilayer structure made of non-ionic surfactants. Niosomes are amphiphilic; hence, they can encapsulate both lipophilic and lipophobic drugs and increase their bioavailability. Current work describes the structure, various methods of preparation and applications of niosomes.