Polymeric Nanoparticles as a Promising Drug Delivery Vehicle

With every era, medical science faces challenges to provide the best health care and efficient drug therapy for the treatment of existing diseases. Current regimes of chemical drugs, though beneficial in a certain sector, have several disadvantages; cytotoxicity and adverse health effects are of primary concern. To accomplish efficient as well as the safe mode of transport for drugs and bioactive molecules, nanotechnology has provided an answer in terms of nanomedicines. Polymeric nanoparticles that can easily be modified to suit the needs not only act as a vehicle to efficiently deliver the drug to the target site but also enhance the bioavailability of the drug. Polymer-drug conjugation delivers the drug specifically to the targeted tumors. The conjugation facilitates increased retention time and enhanced cellular permeability that enables better suppression of the tumors. This chapter gives an insight into the properties of nanoparticles, highlighting the associated advantages and limitations of polymeric nanoparticles as a vehicle of drug delivery to cells.

Keywords: Drug delivery, Gene delivery, Microparticles, Nanocapsules, Nanoparticles, Nanospheres.