Phytosome- a Novel Approach for Herbal Drug Delivery

The bioavailability of some orally administered botanical extracts is erratic and poor due to limited gastro-intestinal absorption. Bioavailability can be improved by using new delivery systems which can enhance the rate and the extent of solubilization into aqueous intestinal fluids and the capacity to cross biomembranes. Phospholipids based drug delivery system have been found promising for better and effective delivery of drug and providing much appropriate systematic drug delivery. The phospholipids molecular structure includes a water-soluble head and two fat-soluble tails, because of this dual solubility, the phospholipids acts as an effective emulsifier, which is also one of the chief components of the membranes in our cells. In other words, complexing the polyphenolic phytoconstituents in molar ratio with phosphatidylcholine results into a new herbal drug delivery system"Phytosome". Phytosomes are an advanced botanicals technology that offers improved absorption, enhanced delivery and increased bioavailability of herbal extracts. Phytosomes exhibit better pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic profile than conventional herbal extracts Phytosome technology has been effectively used to enhanced the bioavailability of many popular herbal extracts including milk thistle, Ginkgo bilobann, grape seed, green tea, hawthorn, ginseng etc and can be developed for various therapeutic uses or dietary supplements This article reviews the current trends in phytosomes drug delivery.