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Dermal drug delivery with ethosomes: therapeutic potential

Elka Touitou and Biana Godin

There is an increasing need to target drugs to the deeper layers of the skin to achieve efficient dermal therapy. There are many patient populations of various ages waiting for new and advanced treatments, including noninvasive therapy for deep and resistant bacterial and viral skin infections, regional therapy for rheumatoid arthritis and more efficient treatment of pilosebaceous structure-related disorders. Thus, ethosomes, innovative carriers capable of overcoming the skin barrier, could provide a solution for delivering drugs into the deep skin strata for successful dermal therapy. The basic characteristics of the ethosome, as well as the mechanism by which this carrier facilitates absorption of drugs in various layers of the skin, are presented, and results with ethosomal formulations designed for new and improved dermal and regional therapies both at experimental and clinical levels are discussed. The efficiency of ethosomal delivery systems containing acyclovir, clindamycin, minoxidil, cannabidiol and erythromycin for dermal therapies in ex vivo and in vivo studies is reviewed. New and advanced therapies proposed with ethosomal drugs could highly increase drug-treatment efficiency and patient convenience.