Advanced delivery strategies facilitating oral absorption of heparins

Publication date: Available online 9 January 2020Source: Asian Journal of Pharmaceutical SciencesAuthor(s): Guihua Fang, Bo TangAbstractHeparins show great anticoagulant effect with few side effects, and are administered by subcutaneous or intravenous route in clinics. To improve patient compliance, oral administration is an alternative route. Nonetheless, oral administration of heparins still faces enormous challenges due to the multiple obstacles. This review briefly analyzes a series of barriers ranging from poorly physicochemical properties of heparins, to harsh biological barriers including gastrointestinal degradation and pre-systemic metabolism. Moreover, several approaches have been developed to overcome these obstacles, such as improving stability of heparins in the gastrointestinal tract, enhancing the intestinal epithelia permeability and facilitating lymphatic delivery of heparins. Overall, this review aims to provide insights concerning advanced delivery strategies facilitating oral absorption of heparins.Graphical AbstractThe current review briefly analyzes various challenges encountered for oral delivery of heparins, and highlights several advanced delivery strategies to improve oral absorption of heparins.
Source: Asian Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences - Category: Drugs & Pharmacology Source Type: research