title: Oral colon delivery of insulin with the aid of functional adjuvants.
abstract: Oral colon delivery is currently considered of importance not only for the treatment of local pathologies, such as primarily inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), but also as a means of accomplishing systemic therapeutic goals. Although the large bowel fails to be ideally suited for absorption processes, it may indeed offer a number of advantages over the small intestine, including a long transit time, lower levels of peptidases and higher responsiveness to permeation enhancers. Accordingly, it has been under extensive investigation as a possible strategy to improve the oral bioavailability of peptide and protein drugs. Because of a strong underlying rationale, most of these studies have focused on insulin. In the present review, the impact of key anatomical and physiological characteristics of the colon on its viability as a protein release site is discussed. Moreover, the main formulation approaches to oral colon targeting are outlined along with the design features and performance of insulin-based devices.
authors.affiliation: Università degli Studi di Milano, Dipartimento di Scienze Farmaceutiche "P. Pratesi", Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Alessandra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Maroni
authors.forename: Lucia
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Zema
authors.forename: Maria Dorly
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Del Curto
authors.forename: Anastasia
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Foppoli
authors.forename: Andrea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gazzaniga
mesh_terms: D000277:Adjuvants, Pharmaceutic / Q000494:pharmacology; D000284:Administration, Oral; D000818:Animals; D001682:Biological Availability; D003106:Colon / Q000378:metabolism*; D016503:Drug Delivery Systems; D015195:Drug Design; D006801:Humans; D007004:Hypoglycemic Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000493:pharmacokinetics; D007328:Insulin / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000493:pharmacokinetics; D007408:Intestinal Absorption; D010455:Peptides / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000493:pharmacokinetics; D011506:Proteins / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000493:pharmacokinetics
chemical_list: D000277:Adjuvants, Pharmaceutic; D007004:Hypoglycemic Agents; D007328:Insulin; D010455:Peptides; D011506:Proteins