Nanosized Ethosomes–A Promising Vesicular Drug Carrier for Transdermal Drug Delivery

Delivering bioactive molecules via the most resistible barrier like skin is the major difficulty that needs to be combatted for the transdermal delivery in order to achieve the desired systemic therapeutic action. This obstacle was overcome by the innovation of a vesicular carrier called ethosome which non-invasively enable the active agent to reach the deeper layers of the skin. Ethosomal systems are phospholipid based, soft malleable vesicles which can deliver drug of different physicochemical characteristics, both in terms of quantity and depth when compared to other vesicular systems. Because of their unique structure and high content of ethanol, transdermal drug delivery has become easy, improving the drug efficacy and patient compliance. This article reviews various aspects of ethosomes including the ethosomal composition, mechanism of penetration, preparation methods, advantages, applications, marketed products of ethosomes. Characterization of ethosomes include particle size, zeta potential, entrapment efficiency, penetration studies etc. These ethosomal nanocarriers opens numerous challenges in the research area for developing improved therapies in the future.