NANOTECHNOLOGY IN EXTRACTION OF HERBAL MEDICINES: REVIEW

Abstract

Herbal medicine is fundamental to Indian herbal therapy, historically known as Ayurveda. There are hundreds of herbs that are capable of treating many types of diseases, including serious and chronic diseases. Importantly, there are hardly any adverse effects from certain plants. Herbal medicine is made from extracts of herbs. Therefore, in the manufacture of herbal medicines, the process of extracting herbal extracts takes high significance. For the extraction of herbs, there are many methods. However, as a tool to extract herbal extracts, the novel drug delivery system (NDDS)-nanotechnology has been gaining popularity. As it is a full manufacturing device that incorporates the techniques of drug formulation (pharmaceutics), biochemistry, molecular biology, and process and technology, NDDS provides miraculous promises. A nano-sized drug release mechanism is used in this process to safely deliver drugs to the targeted parts of the human body. NDDS serves multiple purposes, such as minimising the need for regular monitoring to resolve rejection, increasing the value of the solution, minimising toxicity, and increasing bioavailability. The targeted drug release method has many benefits, such as minimising the number of dosages taken by patients, providing a more uniform drug effect, reducing any risk of side effects, and regulating variations in the amounts of the circulating drug.