Recent advances in microencapsulation of drugs for veterinary applications

Microencapsulation is a process where very minute droplets or particles of solid or liquid or gas are trapped with a polymer to isolate the internal core material from external environmental hazards. Microencapsulation is applied mostly for flavor masking, fortification, and sustained and control release. It improves palatability, absorption, and bioavailability of drugs with good conformity. Microencapsulation has been widely studied in numerous drug delivery systems for human health. The application of microcapsules in the veterinary pharmaceutical sciences is increasing day by day. The treatment systems for humans and animals are likely to be similar, but more complex in the veterinary field due to the diversity of the species, breeds, body size, biotransformation rate, and other factors associated with animal physiology. Commercially viable, economically profitable, and therapeutically effective microencapsulated vaccine, anthelmintic, antibacterial, and other therapeutics have a great demand for livestock and poultry production. Nowadays, researchers emphasize the controlled and sustained-release dosage form of drugs in the veterinary field. This paper has highlighted the microencapsulation materials, preparation techniques, characteristics, roles, and the application of microcapsules in veterinary medicine.