Carotenoids and coenzyme Q10 are naturally occurring antioxidant compounds that are also found in human skin. These bioactive compounds have been the focus of considerable research due to their antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and photoprotective properties. In this review, the current state of the art in the encapsulation of carotenoids and coenzyme Q10 in lipid nanoparticles to improve their bioavailability, chemical stability, and skin absorption is discussed. Additionally, the main findings are highlighted on the cytotoxic and photoprotective effects of these systems in the skin.

Raman spectroscopy is a very promising technique increasingly used in the pharmaceutical industry. Due to its development and improved instrumental versatility achieved over recent decades and through the application of chemometric methods, this technique has become highly precise and sensitive for the quantification of drug substances. Thus, it has become fundamental in identifying critical variables and their clinical relevance in the development of new drugs. In process monitoring, it has been used to highlight in-line real-time analysis, and it has been used more commonly since 2004 when the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) launched Process Analytical Technology (PAT), integrated with the concepts of Pharmaceutical Current Good Manufacturing Practices (CGMPs) for the 21st Century. The present review presents advances in the application of this tool in the development of pharmaceutical products and processes in the last six years.

Buparvaquone (BPQ), a veterinary drug, was formulated as nanostructured lipid carriers (NLC) for leishmaniases treatment. The formulation design addressed poor water solubility of BPQ and lack of human drug delivery system. The DSC/TG and microscopy methods were used for solid lipids screening. Softisan® 154 showed highest BPQ solubility in both methods. The BPQ solubility in liquid lipids using HPLC revealed Miglyol® 812 as the best option. Response surface methodology (RSM) was used to identify the optimal Softisan154 : Miglyol 812 ratios (7 : 10 to 2 : 1) and Kolliphor® P188 and Tween® 80 concentration (>3.0% w/w) aiming forz-average in the range of 100–300 nm for macrophage delivery. The NLC obtained by high-pressure homogenization showed lowz-averages (<350 nm), polydispersity (<0.3), and encapsulation efficiency close to 100%. DSC/TG and microscopy in combination proved to be a powerful tool to select the solid lipid. The relationship among the variables, demonstrated by a linear mathematical model using RSM, allowed generating a design space. This design space showed the limits in which changes in the variables influenced thez-average. Therefore, these drug delivery systems have the potential to improve the availability of affordable medicines due to the low cost of raw materials, using well established, reliable, and feasible scale-up technology.