ABSTRACT:
The overall performance of the drug not only depends on its activity but also depends on the dosage form in which it is delivered. Colloidal carriers have attracted increasing attention during recent years. They include nanoemulsions, nanosuspensions, micelles, soluble polymer-drug conjugated polymeric nanoparticles, lipid based carriers such as liposomes and solid-lipid nanoparticles. Solid lipid nanoparticles are one of the novel potential carrier systems in the range of 100-150nm as alternative materials to polymers which is identical to oil in water emulsion for parenteral nutrition, but the liquid lipid of the emulsion is replaced by a solid lipid. They have many advantages such as good biocompatibility, low toxicity and lipophilic drugs are better delivered by solid lipid nanoparticles and the system is physically stable. SLN are very complex systems with clear advantages and disadvantages to other colloidal carriers. Further work needs to be done to understand the structure and dynamics of SLN on molecular level in vitro and in vivo studies.