Terpesomes as Advanced Nanocarriers for Enhanced Drug Delivery: Formulation Strategies, Mechanistic Insights, and Therapeutic Applications.

Terpenes have a low potential for irritation and are classified as Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) chemicals. Terpenes possess favorable biological properties that support their use in drug delivery. Some terpenes and essential oils have been encapsulated in nanostructured systems called terpesomes to overcome their chemical instability. Compared to conventional vesicles, terpesomes are new vesicular structures that showed greater membrane penetration. The capacity of terpesomes to increase permeability across membranes while decreasing systemic absorption is one of their main benefits. Terpesomes enhance drug permeation by improving membrane interaction and increasing drug transport across biological barriers. The structure, characterization, penetration processes, and applications of terpesomes are all addressed in this review. Overall, this review highlights that the enhanced penetration capability of terpesomes makes them promising lipid vesicular carriers for a wide range of pharmaceutical applications.