Nanoparticles

Obesity, dyslipidemia, and type 2 diabetes are examples of metabolic disorders that pose serious worldwide health risks. These conditions are typified by oxidative stress, persistent low-grade inflammation, and disturbed lipid and glucose metabolism. The study of complementary and alternative methods has been prompted by the fact that, despite their effectiveness, conventional pharmaceutical treatments are frequently constrained by side effects, high prices, and incomplete efficacy. With an emphasis on holistic and multi-targeted therapies using single herbs and polyherbal combinations, traditional Indian medical systems, especially Ayurveda, offer a centuries-old storehouse of botanical knowledge. Numerous preclinical investigations in animal models show that these plant-based treatments can improve overall metabolic homeostasis by regulating important molecular pathways like PPARs, AMPK, and GLUT4, suppressing pro-inflammatory cytokines, enhancing antioxidant defenses, and modulating lipid and glucose metabolism. Synergistic effects are sometimes seen in polyherbal formulations, which provide better benefits across several physiological pathways than single-plant therapies. Although these results demonstrate the therapeutic value of Ayurvedic treatments and their conformity to contemporary scientific concepts, issues with standardization, mechanistic clarification, and comparative effectiveness with mainstream medications still exist. A promising framework for the creation of safe, efficient, and evidence-based phytotherapeutics to control the rising worldwide burden of metabolic illnesses is provided by combining traditional Indian medical knowledge with modern research.

The present study compares three colon-targeted drug delivery systems; Eudragit S100-coated polymeric tablets, PLGA nanoparticles, and alginate hydrogel microspheres, developed for the controlled release of 5-Fluorouracil (5-FU). Each formulation was prepared and optimized using distinct carriers and evaluated under simulated gastrointestinal (GI) conditions to assess their physicochemical characteristics, release behaviour, and stability. The formulations were characterized for particle size, surface charge, encapsulation efficiency, and swelling index. Morphological analysis confirmed smooth coating in polymeric tablets, spherical uniformity in nanoparticles, and a porous structure in hydrogels. In vitro dissolution studies revealed minimal drug release in gastric conditions (≤2% at pH 1.2) and sustained release at colonic pH (7.4). PLGA nanoparticles showed the most controlled release profile, achieving 92.1 ± 2.4% cumulative release at 24 hours, compared with 100.0 ± 3.1% for polymeric tablets and 85.4 ± 2.1% for hydrogels. Kinetic modeling indicated that all systems followed diffusion-dominated release, with nanoparticles best fitting the Higuchi model (R² = 0.981). Stability studies confirmed nanoparticle integrity under prolonged acidic and neutral exposure, while hydrogels exhibited partial deformation. Overall performance analysis identified PLGA nanoparticles as the most efficient system, demonstrating superior acid resistance, encapsulation efficiency, and colon-specific release. These findings suggest that nanoparticle-based carriers offer significant potential for achieving predictable, site-specific, and sustained drug delivery to the colon.

Animal-based testing is important for understanding the performance, mechanism, and translational capacities of floating tablets and in-vitro testing for stomach retention, which is the focus of the current review.  With a limited window for absorption in the upper gastrointestinal tract, drug delivery systems (FDDS) are designed to improve the residence time, bioavailability, and controlled release of medications.  The recipes that employed gas-producing agents like sodium bicarbonate and citric acid, as well as hydrophilic polymers like HPMC, carbopol, and sodium alginate, demonstrated exceptional floating properties with a lag time of less than 12 hours. In vitro research studies showed sustained release profiles along the zero-order or non-Fickian kinetics, whereas in vivo testing in albino rats and rabbits showed long gastric retention and better pharmacokinetic results. Gastric safety and biocompatibility was confirmed by histopathological assessments. Direct compression was determined to have the best formulation through comparative analysis based on stable and efficient formulations compared to wet granulation. All in all, animal tests will be a critical preclinical base to determine optimal proportions of polymers, buoyancy, and release characteristics which will make floating pills safe and effective when applied to the clinical setting.

Liposomal drug delivery systems have been developed as a potential favourite to ameliorate the dermal delivery of the anti-aging substances because they are biocompatible, have the capacity to bind both hydrophilic and lipophilic drugs and possess the ability to boost targeted treatments. In this work the systematic study was done to optimize liposomal formulations against skin penetration by application of Design of Experiments (DoE) approach. The factorial design was used to optimize various formulation parameters such as phospholipid concentration, cholesterol content and hydration time and their influence on the effect on vesicle size, entrapment efficiency and in-vitro skin penetration established. The statistical analysis indicated there was important interaction among the variables and therefore optimal formulation was defined using the technique and it performed better in terms of skin permeation behavior. The findings indicate the effectiveness of the DoE strategy in the development of formulation and the potential of optimized liposomes as a delivery vehicle to anti-aging products.

Breast cancer is one of the major causes of death in women globally and the administration of conventional chemotherapy is usually hampered by systemic toxicity and non-specific distribution of drugs. Approaches based on nanotechnology, in particular, gold nanoparticles (AuNPs), provide a promising platform to develop targeted drug delivery because they are nontoxic, easy to modify on the surface, and they can accumulate in tumors. The objective of this study was to synthesize AuNPs and determine its possible use as a doxorubicin delivery system in breast cancer treatment. Gold nanoparticles were prepared through the citrate reduction technique, characterized in terms of size, morphology and surface charge, and doxorubicin was conjugated to the nanoparticles. The drug-loading capacity and release profile were evaluated by in vitro studies and tumor regression and systemic toxicity were evaluated by in vivo in a breast cancer-induced rat model. These findings showed that the AuNP-doxorubicin formulation was able to attain good drug loading, sustained release, increased tumor targeting, and lower systemic side effects than the free drug administration. These results show that gold nanoparticles can be a useful nanocarriers system of targeted breast cancer therapy, with increased therapeutic effect and reduced side effects.

Analytical method validation (AMV) in the veterinary field forms an important aspect of quality control in pharmaceutical companies in which drugs are used to treat various species of animals to guarantees safety, efficacy and regulatory actions are adhered to. This review points to the significance of the species-based approaches in pharmacokinetics of drug absorption, distribution, metabolism, and residue detection with a focus on the issues of physiological diversity, complex biological samples and ethical requirement. Modern methods such as HPLC, UPLC, GC, LC-MS/MS, UV-Vis, and FTIR are characterized by sensitivity, specificity, and reproducibility and newer techniques such as capillary electrophoresis and microfluidic-based technology, high-resolution mass spectrometry and bioinformatics-directed validation incorporates enhanced sensitivity, specificity, reproducibility, reduced sample volumes, and increased throughput. Future methodological advances in multi-dimensional platforms, green analytical chemistry, chemometrics, and machine learning offer new ways of addressing matrix effects and resource limitations and regulatory limitations. Taken together, these strategies can contribute to effective veterinary drug monitoring, food safety, and sustainable and species-specific AMV practices and direct future research at achieving harmonized and technologically more advanced validation processes.