Nanoparticles (NPs) have been found to be potential targeted and controlled release drug delivery systems. Various drugs can be loaded in the NPs to achieve targeted delivery. Chitosan NPs being biodegradable, biocompatible, less toxic and easy to prepare, are an effective and potential tool for drug delivery. Chitosan is natural biopolymer which can be easily functionalized to obtain the desired targeted results and is also approved by GRAS (Generally Recognized as Safe by the United States Food and Drug Administration [US FDA]). Various methods for preparation of chitosan NPs include, ionic cross-linking, covalent cross-linking, reverse micellar method, precipitation and emulsion-droplet coalescence method. Chitosan NPs are found to have plethora of applications in drug delivery diagnosis and other biological applications. The key applications include ocular drug delivery, per-oral delivery, pulmonary drug delivery, nasal drug delivery, mucosal drug delivery, gene delivery, buccal drug delivery, vaccine delivery, vaginal drug delivery and cancer therapy. The present review describes the formation of chitosan, synthesis of chitosan NPs and their various applications in drug delivery.

Transdermal delivery over the past decade has become the field of interest for drug delivery due to its various advantages such as no first-pass metabolism, increased drug bioavailability, and easy administration. Different vesicle systems like ethosomes, liposomes, niosomes, and transferosomes along with particle systems like lipid nanoparticles, polymeric nanoparticles, carbon nanotubes, and fullerenes have been developed. These vesicles and particle systems have been developed using various easy and effective methods like cold injection method, rotary film evaporation, thin film hydration, high shear homogenization, solvent extraction method, and many more. These drug delivery systems are a very effective and feasible option for transdermal drug delivery and further developments can be made to increase their use. This article explains in detail the preparation methods and applications for these drug delivery systems.

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