Ethosomes-A Priority in Transdermal Drug Delivery

Transdermal drug delivery system was first introduced more than 20 years ago. The technology generated tremendous excitement and interest amongst major pharmaceutical companies in the 1980s and 90s. By the mid to late 1990s, the trend of transdermal drug delivery system merged into larger organizations. Transdermal drug delivery system is a type of convenient drug delivery system where drug goes to the systemic circulation through the protective barrier i.e. Skin. Over the year it has showed promising result in comparison to oral drug delivery system as it eliminates gastrointestinal interferences and first pass metabolism of the drug but the main drawback of TDDS is it encounters the barrier properties of the Stratum Corneum i.e. only the lipophilic drugs having molecular weight < 500 Da can pass through it. Ethosomes have been found to be much more efficient in delivering drug to the skin; Ethosomes are the non invasive drug delivery carriers that enable drugs to reach the deep skin layers finally delivering to the systemic circulation. For optimal skin delivery, drug should be efficiently entrapped within ethosomal vesicles. Ethosomal drug delivery system is a new state of the art technique and easier to prepare in addition to safety and efficacy. Ethosomes have become a area of research interest, because of its enhanced skin permeation, improved drug delivery, increased drug entrapment efficiency etc. Keywords: Ethosomes, Vesicle, Transdermal drug delivery