Drug targeting strategies into the brain for treating neurological diseases

Abstract

Brain specific drug delivery is one of the most interesting and challenging areas of research. The blood-brain barrier separates the brain from blood and acts as a barrier to protect the brain from microorganisms, neurotoxins and chemical substances. But, the same mechanism poses an obstacle for the entry of many drugs into the brain. Worldwide, approximately 1.5 billion people are suffering from CNS disorders, such as Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, multiple sclerosis, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, stroke, HIV-dementia and others. This number indicates the importance of delivering drugs effectively into the brain for treating various brain diseases. The recent advancements in drug targeting, a concept was introduced by Dr. Paul Ehrlich as 'magic bullet' give lot of hopes for delivering drugs specifically to the brain regions to treat brain diseases. This review discusses about the various targeting strategies to deliver drugs into the brain for treating neurological diseases.

Keywords: Blood-brain barrier; Brain targeting; Carrier-mediated transport; Liposomes; Nanoparticles; Neurological diseases.