Liposomes and nanoparticles as vehicles for antibiotics.

Colloidal drug carriers such as liposomes and nanoparticles are easily taken up by phagocytic cells and accumulate in the organs of the reticuloendothelial system. Therefore, they hold promise as carriers for the treatment of intracellular infections with antibiotics that would normally not find easy access to intracellular sites. Consequently, in in vitro and in vivo experiments the therapeutic efficacy of substances such as amphotericin B, dihydrostreptomycin, amikacin, ampicillin, stibogluconate against a number of microorganisms including Leishmania donovani, Candida albicans, Staphylococcus aureus, Mycobacterium avium, Listeria monocytogenes, and Salmonella typhimurium was increased significantly by binding to liposomes and nanoparticles.