Topical Applications

The main purpose of the skin, the largest organ in the human body, is to form a barrier. The skin surface protects the body from dehydration and inhibits the entry of microorganisms into the body. The stratum corneum (SC), with its special lipids and corneocytes, performs the main barrier function of the skin. This barrier makes the dermal and transdermal application of active ingredients difficult. In general, only lipophilic molecules with a molecular weight below 500 Da can penetrate healthy, intact skin. In addition, the transdermal administration of pharmaceutical actives is influenced by several factors, such as patient age, skin condition, application site, and skin metabolism. Suitable excipients and delivery systems provide solutions to these problems.

Lipoid’s broad product portfolio includes specialty lecithins and phospholipids for pharmaceutical dermal applications. A wide range of components and delivery systems with unique properties allows the formulation developer to select the most suitable product for a specific drug delivery system, such as dispersions, emulsions and liposomes.

Phospholipids (PL) offer solutions to these challenges because:

• Act as a transport vehicle (e.g. liposomes, nanoemulsions, elastic liposomes) and can therefore pass the skin barrier;
• Fluidize the SC lipid layer (unsaturated PL) and therefore increase permeability;
• Increase skin moisture, resulting in swelling of the SC, which is accompanied by an increase in permeability;
• Increase the solubility of the active ingredient and thus increase the absorption and bioavailability of the active ingredient;
• Are responsible for the formation of a depot effect of the active ingredient in the skin, resulting in a slow and constant release of the active ingredient;
• Protect the active ingredient from photoinduced and oxidative degradation;