*Drug Delivery through Targeted Approach with Special References to Phytosomes DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.86644*

The major players in global herbal medicine market are Arkopharma, Beovita, Hisimo Pharmaceuticals, Bayer AG, Schaper & Brummer Venus Pharma, and Arizona Natural products. Some key players in the industry involved in the production of herbal medicine and supplements include Bio-Botanica Inc., Dabur Ltd., Guangzhu Pharma Co., Nature's Answer, Inc., Sanjiu Medical & Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. The high market demand and an upbeat market trend in favor of natural products are likely to boost the growth in the days to come [5].

Current drug market-mix contains numerous formulations based on medicinal plants and phytoconstituents. However the constant decree that the herbal formulations lack proper standardization protocols and is less efficacious or require larger dose to show its efficacy has deprived the impetus to become the alternative treatment regimen. Application of recent technological advancements such as amalgamation of novel drug delivery with herbal drugs would augment the efficacy of the traditional system.

Various approaches for improving bioavailability of novel herbals formulations followed as under [6–8]:


Many herbal formulations are being developed with the help of novel technologies of incorporation the phytoconstituents in the vesicles of lipid bi-layers. These vesicles work as novel carriers to deliver the drug at its targeted site. Some advanced drug delivery techniques use novel vehicles "*somes*" as nanobiomedicine delivered by different route of drug delivery. The novel carrier should ideally fulfill two prerequisites. Firstly, it should deliver the drug at predefined period of time or according to the body requirements. Secondly, it should channel the active constituent to the site of action [9]. There are different types of novel drug vehicle as tabulated, use to deliver the drug molecules on the site of action (**Table 2**).

The nano-carrier used in novel drug delivery system of herbal drugs has a potential future, improving the activity and overcoming the problem associated with herbal constituents [10]. Any type of medicament could be delivered to its specific site of action with the help of novel drug delivery system. Researchers are


**Table 2.**

*Different types of novel drug delivery systems [10].*

*Role of Novel Drug Delivery Vehicles in Nanobiomedicine*

in accordance to the statutory compendia which might not be needed in large doses, limited route of drug administration but also could be less effective than the contemporary therapeutic formulations. The rapid progress of allopathic drug lead to its dominance in the therapeutic field. The various types of dosage form of allopathic drugs are available to treat the disease conditions i.e. solid dosage form (tablets, capsules, and powders), Liquid dosage form (syrup, suspension, and emulsion given by oral route and injectables given by parental route), and aerosols. Nausea, vomiting, and dizziness are some common side effects associated with these conventional dosage forms of allopathic system. Major complications have come forth after prolonged use of these formulations. There has been a continuous research on reducing side effects experienced by the patients resulting in some advancement to such conventional dosage form. Novel Drug delivery System (NDDS) is one such area of drug research that focuses on the target specific site of action and to minimize the side effects of the conventional dosage form. Nowadays, there has been a change in global trend from synthetic to natural medicine, which we can say "back to nature." The efficiency of medicinal plant species, or herbal medicine, depends on the active molecules present since they provide synergistic action and thus enhance the therapeutic effectiveness. Research is being continuously carried out for the amalgamation of Novel drug delivery and phytoconstituents to ward off any prevalent side effects of NDDS in allopathic system of treatment after prolonged

There are many kinds of herbal medicines and supplements used worldwide. The global market of phytomedicines currently stands at over \$60 billion annually. The sale of herbal medicines was expected 6.4% on an average annual growth rate

It is widely accepted that 70–80% of people globally rely on natural resources for their treatment. In the year 2017 the American Botanical council accepted that the sale of herbal supplements increased by 7.7% in US (on basis of turnover of herbal market in 2016). Europe leads the chart owing to extensive R&D for herbal medicine owing to considerable increase in funding for research on herbal medicinal plants. America stands on second position in the global herbal medicine market and held 16.2% of market share in 2017. The consumption of herbal supplements in US was majorly used for the conditions such as heart stroke (48.7%), Cancer (43.1%), and arthritis (43%) announced by National center for biotechnology information in 2017. Asia Pacific stands on third position having a growth rate of 5.99% due to the adoption of traditional medicine by pharmaceutical companies, researchers, and policy maker [5].

**Market size (US\$ billions) Percentage** European Union 28 45 Rest EU 2.4 4 ASEAN 10.8 19 Japan 9.8 16 North America 6.9 11 Others 4.1 7 Total 60 100

*Source: http://www.markertresearchfuture.com/reports/herbal-medicine-market-325.*

**126**

**Table 1.**

used [2].

in 2012 [3, 4] (**Table 1**).

**Global herbal market**

*Segmentation of global herbal market in 2012.*

currently underway to develop an ideal drug delivery system which satisfies the need of targeted site of action. Biological membrane presents a barrier through which a drug must pass before it gets absorbed or excreted. Lipid solubility and molecular size of drug molecule pose two major limiting factors to pass the biological membrane by which drug can be absorbed systematically following oral or topical administration [11].

The conventional herbal dosage form has a problem of standardization and quality control which had relegated its usage in the in last few decades. When the side effects of allopathic drugs outweigh their risk to usage the focus for treatment shifts towards the natural components and herbal system of treatment. In herbal novel drug development polymeric nanoparticles and nanocapsules like liposomes, solid lipid nanoparticles, phytosomes and nanoemulsion are been formulated. NDDS provides many advantages for herbal drugs including enhancement of solubility and bioavailability, protection from toxicity, enhancement of stability, enhancement of pharmacological action, improving tissue macrophages distribution, sustained delivery, and protection from physical and chemical degradation. The efficacy of herbal product (or medication) is dependent upon effective route of delivery and level of the active compounds [12].

Novel drug delivery systems deliver the drug components at a rate directed by the need of the body during the period of treatment and channelize the active entity onto the site of action. A number of novel drug delivery systems have been used to deliver herbal medicaments encompassing various routes of administration to achieve controlled and targeted drug delivery, for example, encapsulated vesicles can prolong the existence of the drug in systemic circulation and reduce the toxicity if selective uptake can be achieved through drug targeting, sustained or controlled release of conventional medicines [11, 12].

The novel drug delivery vehicles can be classified on the basis of their size, shape, and their composition (**Table 3**).
