14.1

Introduction

As per the World Health Organization (WHO), the prevalence of skin diseases is

increasing in hot and humid countries like India. The resistant property of the skin

protects the body from several environments such as physical (ultraviolet radiations)

and chemical and microorganisms (Kaur et al. 2020). Global Burden of Disease also

reported that skin disease is leading to be the 18th most common noncommunicable

diseases with around 36.4 million peoples suffered. The major skins diseases are

dermatitis, psoriasis, scabies, fungal skin diseases, acne vulgaris, alopecia areata,

urticaria, keratinocyte carcinoma, etc. (Karimkhani et al. 2017). It is expected that

there will be an increase in the global market for dermaceuticals by 2020, which will

be estimated at around USD 91.40 billion (Kaur et al. 2020). The application of

dermal drug delivery process has also gained particular interest due to its direct

delivery system to the site (skin surfaces), incidences of chronic skin diseases, and

patient compliance. The delivery of the drug into the skin can be broadly classified as

dermal (topically) or transdermal approach (Jain et al. 2017). But it’s a great

challenge for the researchers to overcome the limitations of drug absorption by the

outermost layer of the skin. However, several techniques have been applied to

improve the penetration of the drug into the skin either by disruption or by weaken-

ing the stratum corneum. Techniques such as chemical agents (glycols, ethanol,

terpenes) and physical methods (electroporation, microneedles, microdermabrasion,

and iontophoresis) were used for the successful delivery of the drug into the skin

(Barry 2002; Jain et al. 2015). These two techniques are used lesser due to the

several complications like patient compliances, pain at the site of application, and

skin irritation. So, to overcome these techniques, some formulation-based skin

delivery were nanoparticles, microparticles, and lipid delivery systems. These

formulations can improve the solubilization of drug and can penetrate into the skin

either by sweat gland, transepidermal, or hair follicle (Jain et al. 2015). Among these,

lipid-based nanoformulations (liposomes, solid lipid nanoparticles, nanostructured

lipid carriers) show the capability to challenge the other nanocarriers. These lipid

nanoformulations increase the bioavailability, maintain the physical stability, and

have the controlled release property of the active agents (Puglia and Bonina 2012).

On the other side, these lipid nanoparticles can improve the chemical stability of

the active drugs which are prone to oxidation and hydrolysis or sensitive in the

presence of light (Puglia and Bonina 2012). Scientific evidence related to lipid-based

nanoparticle has revealed that the release rate can be influenced by the type of lipid

used, vehicle, or the concentration of the surfactant used. Other parameters, such as

the method for the preparation of lipid nanoparticles or the concentration of active

drugs in the lipid matrix, also influenced the release rates (Jain et al. 2005). So, the

lipodermal formulations create a lot of opportunities and can minimize the

challenges for the other formulation.

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