Oral Nano-Delivery Systems for Colon-Targeted Drug Delivery of Traditional Chinese Medicine in Ulcerative Colitis

Ulcerative colitis (UC) is a type of inflammatory bowel disease with a high recurrence rate. In this regard, sulfasalazine and immunosuppressive medications are often used for an extended period in clinical practice, but their effectiveness is limited, and they are prone to side effects. Modern research has shown that herbal active ingredients of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), such as polyphenols, alkaloids, quinones, and terpenes, have a promising impact on treating UC via a multi-target mechanism and with low side effects. Poor water solubility and low bioavailability of these agents in the gastrointestinal tract are the most challenging issues in delivering these agents to the target tissues. Researchers have created a variety of oral colon-targeted nano-systems of TCM active ingredients in response to the above formulation issues, which significantly improve the treatment of UC by avoiding gastrointestinal damage, prolonging intestinal retention, and achieving controlled drug release at the lesion site. In order to provide ideas for the oral-targeted treatment of UC with active ingredients from TCM, the research progress of an oral colon-targeted nano-system for the treatment of UC is reviewed in the current study, as well as the research progress of an oral colon-targeted nano-system for the treatment of UC.