Exploration of Drug Science

From: Inflammatory bowel disease in Africa: the current landscape of pharmacological treatments and the promise of emerging innovations

Table 4. The differences between NPs and conventional therapies for IBD treatment

Aspect	NPs for IBD treatment	Type of NPs used		Reference
Targeted drug delivery	NPs precisely deliver drugs to inflamed areas, reducing systemic exposure	Polymeric NPs	Systemic drug administration may affect healthy tissues	[60]
Enhanced drug solubility & bioavailability	Improve the solubility and absorption of poorly soluble drugs	Core-shell NPs	Limited solubility can reduce drug absorption and efficacy	[1]
Reduction of side effects	Minimized exposure to healthy tissues reduces systemic side effects	Lipid NPs	Widespread side effects due to systemic circulation	[16]
Controlled and sustained release	Provides continuous therapeutic effects with reduced dosing frequency	Metal NPs	Requires frequent dosing, leading to fluctuating drug levels	[61]
Improved drug stability	Protects drugs from degradation, extending shelf life	Liposomes	Conventional drugs may degrade quickly, losing effectiveness	[62]
Stimulation of natural defense mechanisms	Some nanoparticles promote natural healing and reduce inflammation	Dendrimers	Mainly focus on symptom suppression rather than healing	[63]

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IBD: inflammatory bowel disease; NPs: nanoparticles

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