Design of chitosan-based nanoformulations for efficient intracellular release of active compounds

The use of chitosan-based nanocarriers to transport active compounds gained an increasing attention in drug delivery. Intracellular delivery, with efficient intracellular release, become an important design considerations in chitosan based nanoformlations. Internal stimuli-responsive nanoformulations are designed to release active compounds after internalization based on certain internal stimuli like pH, redox potential and enzymes. Futhermore, nondestructive pathways may provide a nondigestive compartment for active compounds transport, which can protect the encapsulated agents from possible lysosomal degradation, thereby realizing release agents safely. This review gives a brief overview about the chitosan-based nanoformulations for efficient intracellular cargo release, including internal stimuli-responsive nanoformulations and nondestructive pathways based nanoformulations: design strategies and applications. The present problems and a possible future perspective related them are also discussed.