Novel drug delivery systems in the management of Huntington's disease

Huntington's disease (HD) is a neurodegenerative disease that causes neuronal cell deterioration in a specific part of the brain. Various antidepressants, antipsychotics, tranquilizers, and tetrabenazine, either alone or in combination, are used to treat HD. However, none of these drugs is able to treat the cognitive, psychotic, and behavioral abnormalities associated with HD. Moreover, their long-term administration is limited by their systemic side effects. There are a number of reports wherein certain bioactives have shown neuroprotective effects and symptomatic relief in HD in preclinical studies. However, many of these candidates failed to reach the clinical stage due to issues of poor solubility, bioavailability, and blood-brain barrier (BBB) permeability. Certain nanoformulations can, however, improve the bioavailability as well as BBB permeability of these bioactives. This chapter discusses molecular targets, biomarkers of HD. Further, it also focuses on the limitations associated with conventional dosage forms of the drugs used against HD. Delving deeper, the chapter discusses the use of various NDDS-based formulations, illustrating their neuroprotective effects in HD.