Natural Polymer in Colon Targeting

Abstract

Although oral delivery has become a widely accepted route of administration of therapeutic drugs, the gastrointestinal tract presents several formidable barriers to drug delivery. Colonic drug delivery has gained increased importance not just for the delivery of the drugs for the treatment of local diseases associated with the colon but also for its potential for the delivery of proteins and therapeutic peptides. Targeting of drugs to specific sites of action provides several advantages over non-targeted drugs. These include the prevention of side effects of drugs on healthy tissues and enhancement of drug uptake by targeted cells. Certain plant polysaccharides such as amylose, inulin, pectin and guar gum remains unaffected in the presence of gastrointestinal enzymes and pave the way for the formulation of colon targeted drug delivery systems. This review will cover the use of Natural Polymer for the targeted delivery.