Abstract
Selective targeting of drugs to the proposed site of action provides therapeutic advantages such as reduced toxicity and smaller dose levels. Despite a huge progress made in drug design and delivery systems, many challenges still have to be solved. Small therapeutic drugs always have the potential to pass into the kidneys and be excreted from the body. The use of macromolecular constructs (carriers) that allow longer circulation times, contribute to improved chemical functionality and more precise drug delivery is an attractive alternative option. Bioadhesive systems which will utilize intense contact to increase the drug concentration gradient could be an attractive approach. Because of their specific carbohydrate-binding, lectins can interact with glycoconjugates present on the epithelial cells that line all of the organs exposed to the external environment. The unique carbohydrate specificities of plant lectins can facilitate mucoadhesion and cytoadhesion of drugs. As immunostimulatory molecules with an adjuvant effect plant lectins can also be employed in vaccine development.
Highlights
The traditional routes of drug administration are nasal, oral, subcutaneous, intramuscular, intravenous, topical, ophthalmic and rectal
As immunostimulatory molecules with an adjuvant effect plant lectins can be employed in vaccine development
This paper will give an overview of the systems that have been used for drug delivery via mucosal surfaces and will showcase recent employment of plant-derived lectins in creation of drug delivery vehicles, and their immunomodulatory potential
Summary
The traditional routes of drug administration are nasal, oral, subcutaneous, intramuscular, intravenous, topical, ophthalmic and rectal. A wide variety of polymeric biomaterials are compounds of various formulations and devices which are routinely used for delivering drug to the body. These medication delivery systems may not always achieve optimal drug concentration at the appropriate site, nor do they necessarily minimize local or systemic toxicity [1]. There has been enormous interest in developing controlled-release formulations and devices that can maintain a desired blood plasma level of the drug for longer periods of time without reaching a toxic level or dropping below the minimum effective level [2]. This paper will give an overview of the systems that have been used for drug delivery via mucosal surfaces and will showcase recent employment of plant-derived lectins in creation of drug delivery vehicles, and their immunomodulatory potential
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