Curcumin-hybrid Nanoparticles in Drug Delivery System (Review)

Extensive studies on curcumin has improved that it has certain therapeutic role for different kinds of diseases such as cancer. Regardless of its positive features, its application is hampered by its low water solubility, bioavailability, and low cellular uptake. During last year's several ways have been developed to protect curcumin from degradation and increase its capability to targeting unhealthy cells. The progress in nanotechnology encouraged nanotechnologists to formulate nanoparticles encapsulating curcumin, such as polymer nanoparticles, solid nanoparticles, liposome/lipid nanoparticles, micelles, dendrimers, polymer conjugates, etc. to enhance sustained release of curcumin at target cells and to improve curcumin bioavailability. Nowadays newer formulations of nanoparticles as called Hybrid nanoparticles are designed in order to efficient and specific targeting of curcumin that result in improved therapeutic efficacy of curcumin with high biocompatibility with the aid of aptamers, folic acid, chitosan coated halloysite loaded with curcumin-Au hybrid nanoparticle and so on. This review describes a number of hybrid nanoparticles formulated and their efficacy in specific targeting to cancerous cells.