Affiliations 

  • 1 School of Science, Monash University Malaysia, Jalan Lagoon Selatan, Bandar Sunway, Subang Jaya 47500, Malaysia
  • 2 School of Health Sciences, International Medical University, 126, Jalan Jalil Perkasa 19, Bukit Jalil, Kuala Lumpur 57100, Malaysia
  • 3 Department of Medical Sciences, School of Medical and Life Sciences, Sunway University, Jalan Universiti, Bandar Sunway, Subang Jaya 47500, Malaysia
  • 4 Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Malaysia-Japan International Institute of Technology, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur 54100, Malaysia
Gels, 2021 Sep 27;7(4).
PMID: 34698125 DOI: 10.3390/gels7040153

Abstract

Delivering a drug to the target site with minimal-to-no off-target cytotoxicity is the major determinant for the success of disease therapy. While the therapeutic efficacy and cytotoxicity of the drug play the main roles, the use of a suitable drug delivery system (DDS) is important to protect the drug along the administration route and release it at the desired target site. Polysaccharides have been extensively studied as a biomaterial for DDS development due to their high biocompatibility. More usefully, polysaccharides can be crosslinked with various molecules such as micro/nanoparticles and hydrogels to form a modified DDS. According to IUPAC, hydrogel is defined as the structure and processing of sols, gels, networks and inorganic-organic hybrids. This 3D network which often consists of a hydrophilic polymer can drastically improve the physical and chemical properties of DDS to increase the biodegradability and bioavailability of the carrier drugs. The advancement of nanotechnology also allows the construction of hydrogel DDS with enhanced functionalities such as stimuli-responsiveness, target specificity, sustained drug release, and therapeutic efficacy. This review provides a current update on the use of hydrogel DDS derived from polysaccharide-based materials in delivering various therapeutic molecules and drugs. We also highlighted the factors that affect the efficacy of these DDS and the current challenges of developing them for clinical use.

* Title and MeSH Headings from MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.