Engineering solid lipid nanoparticles for improved drug delivery: promises and challenges of translational research

Nanotechnology is expected to revolutionize existing drug delivery. Many nanostructured systems have been employed for drug delivery and yielded some promising results. Solid lipid nanoparticles (SLN) have been looked at as a potential drug carrier system since last two decades. SLN do not show biotoxicity as they are prepared from physiological lipids. SLN are especially useful in drug delivery as they can enhance the absorption of drugs and improves the bioavailability of both hydrophilic and lipophilic drugs. This paper presents an overview about the various classes of SLN, comparison with available drug carrier systems, different ways of production, in vivo fate and biodistribution and various applications of SLN. Besides, aspects of stability, hurdles and strategies for SLN manufacturing with potential of clinical translation are also discussed.