Chitosan nanoparticles in drug therapy of infectious and inflammatory diseases.

INTRODUCTION: Chitosan, a polymer from the chitin family has diverse pharmaceutical and bio-medical utility because of its easy widespread availability, non-toxicity, biocompatibility, biodegradability, rich functionalities and high drug-loading capacity. Recent pharmaceutical research has examined the use of chitosan-based systems for drug delivery applications in various diseases. The availability of functional groups permits the conjugation of specific ligands and thus helps to target loaded drugs to the site of infection/inflammation. Slow biodegradation of chitosan permits controlled and sustained release of loaded moieties; reduces the dosing frequency and is useful for improving patient compliance in infectious drug therapy. The muco-adhesion offered by chitosan makes it an attractive candidate for anti-inflammatory drug delivery, where rapid clearance of the active moiety due to the increased tissue permeability is the major problem. The pH-dependent swelling and drug release properties of chitosan present a means of passive targeting of active drug moieties to inflammatory sites. AREAS COVERED: Development of chitosan-based nanoparticulate systems for drug delivery applications is reviewed. The current state of chitosan-based nanosystems; with particular emphasis on drug therapy in inflammatory and infectious diseases is also covered. EXPERT OPINION: The authors believe that chitosan-based nanosystems, due to the special and specific advantages, will have a promising role in the management of infectious and inflammatory diseases.