Title : Improving the efficiency of pharmaceutical drugs by the biomaterials extracted from insects
Abstract:
The cuticle composition of insects contains chitin in a matrix with cuticular proteins, waxes, hydrocarbons, and other compounds. Insect cuticular hydrocarbons (CHCs) are a group of lipids that includes several hundreds of individual compounds among which the main chemical groups include alkanes, methyl alkanes, and aliphatic components. The hydrocarbon profiles differ from one another in the abundance of specific hydrocarbons or different components. Identifying insect cuticle composition is the first step towards improving their biological and physiological roles in the bodies of living organisms, as cuticular lipids can protect them against microbial pathogens. Chitin exists usually in a complex matrix with other compounds in insects. Chitin and its derivatives have exhibited beneficial biological properties including biodegradability, biocompatibility, renewable origin, non-toxicity, non-allergenicity and non-antigenicity. Moreover, chitin and chitosan have notable bioactivities such as antimicrobial, antitumor, immunoadjuvant, anti-thrombogenic, antichole-teremic agent, and bioadhesive. The major challenge in the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases including Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and Huntington’s disease, is the delivery of the appropriate drugs to target tissue. Concerning limitations to using large, non-lipophilic compounds with high polarities, chitin, and its derivatives such as chitosan can be alternative, safe, and efficient carriers for drug delivery. Moreover, a chitosan-based drug delivery system in treating diseases like diabetes mellitus, cancers, and chemotherapy is also used. The existence of functional amino and hydroxyl groups in the chitosan structure made this molecule efficiently bind to active compounds, which is crucial for the exact dosing and prolonged release of drugs. In recent years, nanotechnology in the drug delivery industry has used nanomaterials. Chitosan-based nanoparticles, which have a dimension of between 100 and 400 nanometers, can be used considerably in the mucosal route to transport the drug to the brain and other body tissues. Concerning drugs that are used superficially on the ocular surface, chitosan-based nanoparticles have shown the potential to increase bioavailability and extend the duration of drug bioavailability in the ocular tissue.
