**1. Background**

With the advent of civilization Human beings have demonstrated their dependence on Nature and plant to fulfill all basic needs. In an eventuality of an infirmity, diseased situation or healing of body ailments the use the plant based remedies had been on the anvil. With the passing of time the knowledge of healing from natural resources developed into science of healing and was documented in India as Ayurveda. The other world event over had similar chronological developments that led to the validation of the traditional knowledge of healing, that strength of of herbal formulations for the treatment of disease and body ailments. Most of the herbal formulations are administered via oral route and are poorly absorbed due to hydrophobic behavior which leads to decreased bioavailability and increased systemic clearance. Repeated administration or dose increment is required to maintain the therapeutic efficacy thereby limiting the use of herbal medicines [1]. Commonly, the herbal medicines utilize crude powders, extracts be formulation

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 used [2].

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

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].


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**Table 2.**

*Drug Delivery through Targeted Approach with Special References to Phytosomes*

products are likely to boost the growth in the days to come [5].

promoting the active molecule's absorption.

use to deliver the drug molecules on the site of action (**Table 2**).

• Liposomes • Nanoparticles and microspheres • Niosomes • Solid lipid nanoparticles

• Resealed erythrocytes • Supramolecular biovectors

• Hydrogel nanoparticles • Microparticles

• Lipoproteins • Cyclodextrins • Polymeric micelles • Aquasomes • Dendrimers • Emulsions

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

The major players in global herbal medicine market are Arkopharma, Beovita,

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

• Chemical derivatization to improve bioavailability which, however, generates a

number of chemical analogs that need to be appropriately screened.

• Stabilizing natural molecules and promotion of intestinal absorption.

• Improving pharmacokinetic profile by formulating with dietary ingredients

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,

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

• Combination of the active molecules with other compounds as adjutants

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

*DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.86644*

followed as under [6–8]:

(soy lecithin).

#### **Table 1.**

*Segmentation of global herbal market in 2012.*
