Aquasomes as Smart Nanocarriers: A Review on Drug Delivery Potential

Aquasomes, a novel Vesicular Drug Delivery (VDD) technology in the pharmaceutical industry, are composed of a three-layered self-assembled nanoparticle (NP) such as a ceramic core, carbohydrate coating, and drug. It adsorbs pharmaceuticals or bioactives while preserving the structural integrity of the bioactive using a carbohydrate coating. The purpose of the aquasomes is to deliver bioactive molecules, such as genes, proteins, antigens, hormones, and vaccines, to specific sites. They are spherical in shape with a size from 60 to 300 nm. Many vesicular drug delivery systems are not as good as aquasomes because their carbohydrate-coated solid core keeps the native shape and biological activity of sensitive biomolecules. This is not possible with liposomes or transferosomes, which mainly make substances more permeable and can cause structural damage. This paper encompasses the history, development, properties, benefits, drawbacks, applications, routes of administration, and research opportunities of aquasomes. Thus, researchers will benefit from this study of aquasomes, their applications, and their future with Artificial Intelligence (AI) in pharmaceutical sciences.