Oral Delivery of Biotechnology based Drugs: Dream or Reality?

摘要

Biotechnology has provided a wide array of therapeutic agents such as peptide, protein, vaccine and gene products that are currently mainly administered by means of injections. Therapeutic agents produced by biotechnological processes such as re-combinant DNA technology, fermentation, tissue and cell culture technology as well as genetic engineering are usually large, hydrophilic molecules facing delivery challenges, for example, these drugs are susceptible to degradation and are generally poorly membrane permeable. Since successful delivery of any drug is a pre-requisite to achieve the therapeutic goal, novel strategies have emerged in the late 20th century to overcome challenges associated with the oral route of drug administration. These strategies include, but are not restricted to micro- and nanotechnology including self-emulsifying lipid based formulations, dendrimers and devices, permeability enhancing technology, targeting of active transporters and membrane receptors, use of cell penetrating peptides, chemical modifications of peptides such as inclusion complex formation and peptide conjugates, site-specific delivery systems, muco-adhesive systems and polymeric hydrogels.