Table 3.

Novel formulations to treat fungal pulmonary infections.

Formulation	Drugs	Mechanism of Action	Excipients	Comments	Reference
Polymeric nanoparticles	Voriconazole	Inhibition of ergosterol demethylation	Chitosan	Enhanced lung deposition and demonstrated in vitro efficacy against Aspergillus	[138]
Inorganic nanoparticles	Leaf extract of Artemisia sieberi	Not reported	Silver (AgNO3)	Demonstrated efficacy against Aspergillus, reducing lung tissue damage, and reduced oxidative stress	[139]
Liposomes	Dapsone	Inhibition of synthesis of dihydrofolic acid	DPPC Cholesterol	Prolonged in vitro release up to 16 h	[140]
Micelles	Amphotericin B	Membrane disruption	Chitosan Stearic acid	Aerosolisation of amphotericin B with improved activity compared to the free drug	[141]
Liposomes	Amphotericin B	Membrane disruption	Egg PC Cholesterol OPM OPP	Improved in vivo airway penetration in rats and accumulation in lung tissue for over 24 h	[143]
Nanostructured aggregates	Itraconazole	Inhibition of ergosterol demethylation	Mannitol Lecithin	Achieved lung deposition and systemic levels in mice	[144]

Key: 1,2-dipalmitoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (DPPC), phosphatidylcholine (PC), O-palmitoylated mannan (OPM), O-palmitoylated pullulan (OPP).