title: Excipients with specialized functions for effective drug delivery.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  There is a growing need for the development of pharmaceutical excipients that could improve product performance and overcome the shortcomings of new drug moieties, such as their poor solubility and membrane permeability, as well as to aid with modern manufacturing processes.
  
  
  METHODS
  Different types of functional excipients are discussed in this paper, in terms of their roles in modern dosage forms to optimize drug delivery and manufacturability. Functions of specialized excipients that are covered in this article include the enhancement of drug membrane permeability, the improvement of drug solubility and stability, the regulation of drug release in response to feedback mechanisms and assistance with the production of dosage forms.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Modern drug delivery systems rely on sophisticated excipients with multiple functions to improve overall product performance. The excipient market is expected to grow substantially with emerging trends in the development of these advanced drug delivery systems.
authors.affiliation: North-West University, Faculty of Health Sciences, Unit for Drug Research and Development, Potchefstroom campus, Potchefstroom, 2520, South Africa. sias.hamman@nwu.ac.za
authors.forename: Josias
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hamman
authors.forename: Jan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Steenekamp
mesh_terms: D000042:Absorption; D001682:Biological Availability; D003692:Delayed-Action Preparations / Q000737:chemistry; D004304:Dosage Forms; D004337:Drug Carriers / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000493:pharmacokinetics*; D005079:Excipients / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000493:pharmacokinetics*; D006801:Humans; D008055:Lipids / Q000737:chemistry; D010539:Permeability; D004364:Pharmaceutical Preparations / Q000008:administration & dosage; D010743:Phospholipids / Q000737:chemistry; D012995:Solubility; D012997:Solvents / Q000737:chemistry; D013501:Surface-Active Agents / Q000737:chemistry
chemical_list: D003692:Delayed-Action Preparations; D004304:Dosage Forms; D004337:Drug Carriers; D005079:Excipients; D008055:Lipids; D004364:Pharmaceutical Preparations; D010743:Phospholipids; D012997:Solvents; D013501:Surface-Active Agents