Review and current status of emulsion/dispersion technology using an internal gelation process for the design of alginate particles.

Emulsification/internal gelation has been suggested as an alternative to extrusion/external gelation in the encapsulation of several compounds including sensitive biologicals such as protein drugs. Protein-loaded microparticles offer an inert environment within the matrix and encapsulation is conducted at room temperature in a media free of organic solvents. Recently, the concept of internal gelation has been applied to formulating nanoparticles as drug delivery systems. Emulsification/internal gelation technologies available for microparticles preparation, particularly that involving alginate polymer, are described as well as recent advances towards applications in nanotechnology. Those methods show great promise as a tool for the development of encapsulation processes, especially for the new field of nanotechnology using natural polymers.