Formulation approaches and pharmaceutical applications of chitosan and thiolated chitosan nanoparticles

Abstract

Effective oral drug delivery is highly desirable for a controlled drug release using various polymers. Among different polymers, chitosan is known to be a safe, nontoxic material that has served as an efficient drug carrier. It is biocompatible, biodegradable, and obtained by hydrolyzing the amino acetyl groups of chitins. Structurally chitosan does not possess any thiol group but is modified chemically to add free thiol groups to its structure. This derivatization makes it an ideal carrier with properties such as mucoadhesion and permeation of drugs. Recently it has been used for immune modulation and bone resorption because of the excessive charge on its surface that helps its binding with the charged surfaces. As a result, the current research thoroughly assesses the efficacy of chitosan and thiolated chitosan nanoparticles for oral drug administration in medicine, particularly in bone tissue regeneration for osteoporosis treatment.