Lipid-Polymer Hybrid Nanoparticles for Topical Drug Delivery System (original) (raw)

Human skin not only functions as a permeation barrier (mainly due to the stratum corneum layer), but also provides a unique delivery pathway for therapeutic and other active agents. These compounds penetrate via intercellular, intracellular and transappendageal routes, resulting in topical delivery (into skin strata) and transdermal delivery (to subcutaneous tissues and into the systemic circulation). Lipid–polymer hybrid nanoparticles (LPHNPs) are next-generation core–shell nanostructures, conceptually derived from both liposome and polymeric nanoparticles (NPs), where a polymer core remains enveloped by a lipid layer. Although they have garnered significant interest, they remain not yet widely exploited or ubiquitous. Recently, a fundamental transformation has occurred in the preparation of LPHNPs, characterized by a transition from a two-step to a one-step strategy, involving synchronous self-assembly of polymers and lipids. Owing to its two-in-one structure, this approach is of ...