Natural and Synthetic Compounds in Pharmaceutical Formulations and Drug Delivery Systems

Dear Colleagues,

Natural and synthetic compounds may be applied in various pharmaceutical formulations, including in nanosized drug delivery systems. Numerous natural products derived from plants, marine or microbial sources have fascinating biological activities, offering novel prospects for the drug discovery process. In addition, synthetic bioactive compounds or semisynthetic natural derivatives may be produced as promising candidates for treating diseases. On the other hand, various chemical properties, including stability, or biological properties, such as pronounced adverse effects, may limit their clinical application. To overcome these challenges in the development of pharmaceutical products, drug delivery systems incorporating natural or synthetic compounds may be developed. In this sense, conventional formulations (e.g., tablets, capsules, creams, gels, etc.) or nanosized drug delivery systems (such as, liposomes, micelles, dendrimers, polymeric nanoparticles, etc.) could be designed in order to enhance the stability and biopharmaceutical properties of formulations, and ensure the efficacy and safety of the active ingredient.

This Special Issue aims to address recent research on the biological/therapeutic activities of formulations containing natural molecules, semi-synthetic derivatives, and synthetic compounds, including the isolation, purification, synthesis and biological evaluation of the molecules. Manuscripts that reflect novel approaches to the design and development of drug delivery systems containing natural, semi-synthetic, and synthesized molecules for the treatment of diseases are especially welcome.

We are pleased to invite you to submit original and review articles attending to all aspects of delivery systems with natural products, semi-synthetic derivatives, and synthesized compounds.

In this Special Issue, original research articles and reviews are welcome. Research areas may include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Drug design, development and delivery systems with natural products, semi-synthetic derivatives, and synthetic compounds;
• In vitro and in vivo studies of all drug delivery systems with natural products, semi-synthetic derivatives, and synthetic compounds;
• Drug delivery properties, manufacturing processes, and quality control studies with natural products, semi-synthetic derivatives, and synthetic compounds;
• Microparticles, nanoparticles, and macromolecular conjugates as drug delivery systems for natural products, semi-synthetic derivatives, and synthetic compounds;
• Conventional drug delivery systems for natural products, semi-synthetic derivatives, and synthetic compounds;
• Physicochemical and chemical methods for drug delivery systems with natural products, semi-synthetic derivatives, and synthetic compounds;
• Innovative aspects of drug delivery systems with natural products, semi-synthetic derivatives, and synthetic compounds;
• Bioavailability and drug delivery systems employing natural products, semi-synthetic derivatives, and synthetic compounds.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Prof. Dr. Ademar Alves Da Silva Filho
Prof. Dr. Guilherme Diniz Tavares
Prof. Dr. Frederico Pittella
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Pharmaceutics is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• natural products
• synthetic compounds
• drug delivery systems
• nanotechnology
• pharmaceutical formulations