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RESEARCH PRODUCT

Pectin as Drug-Release Vehicle

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Pectin as a natural biopolymer is extensively used for pharmaceutical and biomedical applications, essentially due to its gelling properties that could be influenced by pectin sources and extraction methods. This chapter focuses on an overview of pectin drug delivery systems classified by their administration routes. Oral drug delivery systems have been mainly developed, as pectin could be used in tablets as binder or matrix excipients and in microparticles/beads obtained by ionotropic gelation. The main objective is to target the colon, as pectin is resistant in acidic pH and sensitive to pectinolytic enzymes in the colon. To obtain suitable properties, pectin could be used in its native state or after chemical modification and it could be also used in association with other compounds (e.g., polysaccharides, proteins, or silica). Mucous routes are also presented with examples of drug delivery systems for buccal, nasal, ocular, cutaneous and vaginal routes. Moreover, the gelling and mucoadhesive properties of pectin could be further exploited to improve the clinical efficacy of drug loaded in dosage forms. Finally, the parenteral route is presented with new developments due to good compatibility between biological cells and pectin and some recent studies about cancer are also discussed.