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A drug carrier or drug vehicle is a substrate used in the process of drug delivery which serves to improve the selectivity, effectiveness, and/or safety of drug administration.[1] Drug carriers are primarily used to control the release of drugs into systemic circulation. This can be accomplished either by slow release of a particular drug over a long period of time (typically diffusion) or by triggered release at the drug's target by some stimulus, such as changes in pH, application of heat, and activation by light. Drug carriers are also used to improve the pharmacokinetic properties, specifically the bioavailability, of many drugs with poor water solubility and/or membrane permeability.
A wide variety of drug carrier systems have been developed and studied, each of which has unique advantages and disadvantages. Some of the more popular types of drug carriers include liposomes, polymeric micelles, microspheres, and nanoparticles.[2] Different methods of attaching the drug to the carrier have been implemented, including adsorption, integration into the bulk structure, encapsulation, and covalent bonding. Different types of drug carrier utilize different methods of attachment, and some carriers can even implement a variety of attachment methods.[3]
- ^ "Pharmaceutical Vehicles | DrugBank Online". go.drugbank.com. Retrieved 2022-02-10.
- ^ Svenson, Sönke (2004). Carrier-based drug delivery. Washington, D.C.: American Chemical Society, Division of Colloid and Surface Chemistry. pp. 3–9. OCLC 1132091618.
- ^ Zhang, Silu; Chu, Zhiqin; Yin, Chun; Zhang, Chunyuan; Lin, Ge; Li, Quan (2013). "Controllable Drug Release and Simultaneously Carrier Decomposition of SiO2-Drug Composite Nanoparticles". Journal of the American Chemical Society. 135 (15): 5709–5716. doi:10.1021/ja3123015. OCLC 841292280. PMID 23496255. Archived from the original on 16 August 2021 – via WorldCat, PubMed.