Liposomes have been used extensively as micro- and nanocarriers for hydrophobic or hydrophilic molecules. However, conventional liposomes are biodegradable and quickly eliminated, making it difficult to be used for delivery in specific routes, such as the oral and systemic routes. One way to overcome this problem is through complexation with polymers, which is referred to as a liposome complex. The use of polymers can increase the stability of liposome with regard to pH, chemicals, enzymes, and the immune system. In some cases, specific polymers can condition the properties of liposomes to be explicitly used in drug delivery, such as targeted delivery and controlled release. These properties are influenced by the type of polymer, crosslinker, interaction, and bond in the complexation process. Therefore, it is crucial to study and review these parameters for the development of more optimal forms and properties of the liposome complex. This article discusses the use of natural and synthetic polymers, ways of interaction between polymers and liposomes (on the surface, incorporation in lamellar chains, and within liposomes), types of bonds, evaluation standards, and their effects on the stability and pharmacokinetic profile of the liposome complex, drugs, and vaccines. This article concludes that both natural and synthetic polymers can be used in modifying the structure and physicochemical properties of liposomes to specify their use in targeted delivery, controlled release, and stabilizing drugs and vaccines.

Starch has emerged as a new attractive biopolymer for use in pharmaceutical applications, owing to its distinctive physical, chemical and functional properties. This biopolymer has several potential advantages: it is biocompatible, low cost, non-toxic and easily isolated from plant sources. In the pharmaceutical field, starch is used as a raw material for developing various drug delivery platforms. Generally, cassava starch (tapioca) is obtained from the swollen roots of the perennial shrub Manihot esculenta and it contains a low amount of amylose in contrast to other varieties of starches. Because of this reason, cassava starch exhibits various prime benefits, including a low gelatinization temperature, higher swelling power and a relatively high viscosity paste, making it a preferable excipient for pharmaceutical applications. However, cassava starches in their native form are not effective for many applications because of their inefficiency in handling various processing requirements like high temperature and diverse pH. Their applicability can be enhanced by starch modification. These functional starches have demonstrated outstanding prospects as primary excipients in many pharmaceutical formulations. In this article, we discuss the potential application of cassava starches in the pharmaceutical and biomedical fields, along with the toxicity assessment of modified cassava starches.

Objective: To manage the increasing burden of skin cancer cases globally and to replace conventional invasive treatments and their side effects, the present study is aimed to develop a transfersomal herbal gel of Green Tea Catechins (GTC) extracted from indigenous green tea and evaluate it for in vivo management of skin cancer in an experimental animal model. Methods: GTC-loaded transfersomes (GTCTF) were prepared by the thin-film hydration method. After optimizing the GTCTFs using the Box-Behnken design, they were characterized for zeta potential, structure, in vitro drug release, and in vitro skin permeation. Carbopol 940 gel was developed for the topical delivery of GTCTF and characterized for pH, viscosity, spreadability and in vitro skin permeation. In vitro MTT assay and in vivo chemopreventive and anticancer efficacy of the GTCTF gel were evaluated in mice. Results: The GTCTF has shown a particle size of 151.4±1.9 nm, entrapment efficiency of 68.25±0.06 %, and drug loading of 10.41±0.02 %. The in vitro MTT assay in B16F10 melanoma cell lines showed promising anticancer efficacy of the GTCTF. GTCTF gel was found suitable for topical delivery with favorable pH, viscosity, spreadability, and permeability and effective in preventing and curing skin cancer in mice, with a significant reduction of tissue biochemical parameters like TNF-α, IL-1β, and IL-6. Conclusion: Collectively, successful prevention and curing of the induced skin cancer in the experimental animal model by the GTCTF gel have established a novel herbal nanomedicine approach for the management of skin cancer.

Three-dimensional microneedles (3D-MNs) are the emerging new concept in the biomedical and healthcare sector for transdermal delivery which easily penetrates the skin without pain and enhances drug permeability. This review aims to elaborate on the type of MNs, the material used, and the critical process parameter impact on the fabrication of 3D-MNs. It also covers all the evaluation parameters as well as their application in a biomedical field such as drug delivery and immunization. For a compilation of this article, we collected the data from PubMed, ResearchGate, Google scholar, and Google patents. GRAPHICAL ABSTRACT

Background: Targeting lung cancer while sparing healthy cells is the cornerstone of chemotherapy; however, bioavailability issues and complex biological barriers prevent their accumulation in the tumor sites. Working on this rationale, the present study was aimed to develop novel and affordable hybrid nanocarriers combined with folate and pH-responsive functionalities for targeted delivery of Resveratrol (FOL-RSV-LPHNCs). Methods: The developed FOL-RSV-LPHNCs were first optimized by the design of experiment with Box–Behnken design and then characterized for physicochemical properties, cytotoxicity, in vivo pharmacokinetic behavior and anticancer efficacy in the xenograft mouse model. Results: Results showed that optimized FOL-RSV-LPHNCs had a monodisperse spherical size of 247.86 ± 0.30 nm, entrapment efficiency of 93.72 ± 0.10% and drug loading of 4.16 ± 0.02%, respectively. The amount of RSV released from FOL-RSV-LPHNCs was 96.53 ± 2.16% at pH 5.8 and 23.21 ± 2.01% at pH 7.4, indicative of a pH-responsive release pattern and good physiological stability. In vitro cytotoxicity study revealed that FOL-RSV-LPHNCs remarkably inhibited the viability of A549 cells and produced negligible toxic effect on Wi-38 healthy cells. The single-dose intravenous administration of FOL-RSV-LPHNCs displayed 3.79-fold longer AUC_0-∞, 3.54-fold greater t_1/2 and 4.16-fold higher MRT_0-∞ than free RSV. Finally, in vivo targeting and anticancer studies demonstrated that FOL-RSV-LPHNCs selectively internalized to the cancerous region and suppressed the tumor volume with an 8.66-fold higher rate in the xenograft mouse model. The folate receptor-mediated uptake mainly facilitates this superior therapeutic response which was further confirmed by in silico molecular docking and dynamic simulation. Conclusions: Our findings suggested that FOL-RSV-LPHNCs might serve as an auspicious nanoplatform for targeted drug delivery and treatment of lung cancer. Graphical