Applications of Chitosan in Prevention and Treatment Strategies of Infectious Diseases.

Chitosan is the most commonly investigated functional cationic biopolymer in a wide range of medical applications due to its promising properties such as biocompatibility, biodegradability, and bioadhesivity, as well as its numerous bioactive properties. Within the last three decades, chitosan and its derivatives have been investigated as biomaterials for drug and vaccine delivery systems, besides for their bioactive properties. Due to the functional groups in its structure, it is possible to tailor the delivery systems with desired properties.

Polymeric-Micelle-Based Delivery Systems for Nucleic Acids.

Nucleic acids can modulate gene expression specifically. They are increasingly being utilized and show huge potential for the prevention or treatment of various diseases. However, the clinical translation of nucleic acids faces many challenges due to their rapid clearance after administration, low stability in physiological fluids and limited cellular uptake, which is associated with an inability to reach the intracellular target site and poor efficacy.

Current State of Lipid Nanoparticles (SLN and NLC) for Skin Applications.

The increasing knowledge on skin physiology, formulation science and nanotechnology has led to continuous improvements in cosmetics, and introduction of dermocosmetics has been increasing particularly for the management of skin disorders such as acne, eczema, psoriasis, etc. Nowadays, research has been focused on the development of products which can efficiently administer active compounds to the target skin layers while minimizing side effects. The use of multifunctional lipid nanoparticles for cosmetic and dermocosmetic purposes is promising not only because biocompatible ingredients are used in their composition, but also because of their ability to show enhanced skin penetration.

Modified chitosan-based nanoadjuvants enhance immunogenicity of protein antigens after mucosal vaccination.

Nasal vaccination is considered to be an effective and convenient way of increasing immune responses both systemically and locally. Although various nanovaccine carriers have been introduced as potential immune adjuvants, further improvements are still needed before they can be taken to clinical usage. Chitosan-based nanovaccine carriers are one of the most widely studiedadjuvants, owing to the abilityof chitosan toopen tight junctions between nasal epithelial cells and enhance particle uptake as well as its inherent immune activating role.

Nasal vaccination with poly(β-amino ester)-poly(d,l-lactide-co-glycolide) hybrid nanoparticles.

Mucosal vaccination stimulates both mucosal and systemic immunity. However, mucosal applications of vaccine antigens in their free form generally result in poor systemic immune responses and need adjuvantation. In this study, bovine serum albumin loaded, new hybridised poly(β-amino ester)-poly(d,l-lactide-co-glycolide) nanoparticles were prepared by double emulsion-solvent evaporation method, characterised and evaluated in vivo as nasal vaccine carriers.

Bioadhesive tablets containing cyclodextrin complex of itraconazole for the treatment of vaginal candidiasis.

Itraconazole (ITR) is commonly used in the treatment of Candida infections. It has a nephrotoxic effect and low bioavailability in patients who suffer from renal insufficiency, and its poor solubility in water makes ITR largely unavailable. Cyclodextrins (CyDs) are used to form inclusion complexes with drugs to improve their aqueous solubility and to reduce their side effects.