Nanostructured liquid-crystalline particles for drug delivery.

INTRODUCTION: Nanostructured lyotropic liquid crystal particles (LLC NPs) have proven to be extremely useful tools for applications in drug delivery. These structured nanoparticles are formed by amphiphilic molecules and contain internal water channels, which are not in contact with external water, and where polar drugs can situate; on the other hand, apolar drugs can be loaded in the lipophilic part of the structure and the amphiphilic drugs can locate at the polar/apolar interfaces. AREAS COVERED: A revision of the most relevant results published in the field of LLC NPs has been made. The first section discusses the most common compounds used in these nanoparticles and their preparation and characterization. A summary of recent and relevant results including the composition and type of nanoparticles used, the illness treated, the administration via and some special features in each case have been summarized in a table. EXPERT OPINION: LLC NPs are highly versatile drug delivery systems, which can be applied by topical, oral and intravenous treatments. Especially relevant is their use for the release of anticancer drugs, biomolecules and vaccines. Nevertheless a number of critical points need to be solved in order to attain practical applications.