Nanomaterials in Drug Delivery System

Nanomaterial plays an important role in enhancing effective treatment of certain diseases nowadays. Owing to its near molecular-size scale, many pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries are now keen to use nanomaterials as their drug stabilizing agent as well as a vehicle to deliver their drug into a targeted site at a specific dosage with a controlled release time. Currently, the most studied and used nanomaterial in drug delivery is liposome, an amphipathic molecule that is able to carry both hydrophobic and hydrophilic drugs. Other nanomaterials such as chitosan, graphene-oxide, carbon nanotube, nanodiamond and mesoporous silica are also extensively studied to be used commercially due to their unique characteristics. These nanomaterials need first to be modified and functionalized to ensure effective treatment and reach the targeted site. In this review article, the characteristics and modification applied to these materials were elaborated and how these modifications enhance the treatment was also discussed.