ABSTRACT
Drug targeting makes easier the therapeutic agents to reach the receptor site or desired location in the body and illustrates an improved therapeutic response at a pre-determined rate and time. Drug targeting shortens the entry of various therapeutics to non-target(s) organ/tissue and provides safe and efficient delivery. Moreover, it enhanced the pharmacological effect and minimized untoward effects. For better understanding about the targeting concept, it is necessary to know the rationale of drug targeting, type of targeting, targeting moieties, targeting sites, drug carriers and ligands. This chapter discussed the various levels of targeting (organ/tissue, cellular and sub-cellular levels) as well as different approaches of drug targeting, including active targeting, passive targeting, inverse targeting, physical targeting, dual targeting and ligand-mediated targeting along with different factors influencing the drug targeting. In addition, this chapter also explained about various examples of drug targeting exploiting dendrimer-based formulations to an adequate length through different routes of administration.
