Niosome is a novel, vesicular drug delivery system meant to deliver drug in a controlled manner to increase its bioavailability, therapeutic efficacy and duration of action thereby minimizing side-effects. Niosomes are structurally similar to liposomes. However, the bilayer of niosomes is made of Non-ionic surfactants rather than phospholipids. Niosomes offer several advantages over conventional drug therapy, but niosomes also have some serious challenges. This paper overviews the types of niosomes, its formulation, effect of individual components on niosomes, various methods of preparation, evaluation and its applications. Finally, patents on niosomal formulations are also discussed.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.