The transdermal route of drug delivery has gained immense interest for pharmaceutical researchers. The major hurdle for diffusion of drugs and bioactives through transdermal route is the stratum corneum, the outermost layer of the skin. Currently, various approaches such as physical approach, chemical approach, and delivery carriers have been used to augment the transdermal delivery of bioactives. This review provides a brief overview of mechanism of drug transport across skin, different lipid vesicular systems, with special emphasis on lipid vesicular systems including transfersomes, liposomes, niosomes, ethosomes, virosomes, and pharmacosomes and their application for the delivery of different bioactives.
Keywords: bioactives; delivery system; lipid vesicles; transdermal delivery; vesicular system.