Drug release from various polymers is generally governed by the type of polymer/s incorporated in the formulation and mechanism of drug release from polymer/s. A single polymer may show one or more mechanisms of drug release out of which one mechanism is majorly followed for drug release. Some of the common mechanisms of drug release from polymers were, diffusion, swelling, matrix release, leaching of drug, etc. Mechanism or rate of drug release from a polymer or a combination of polymers can be predicted by using different computational methods or models. These models were capable of predicting drug release from its dosage form in advance without actual formulation and testing of drug release from dosage form. Quantitative structure-property relationship (QSPR) is an important tool used in the prediction of various physicochemical properties of actives as well as inactives. Since last several decades QSPR has been applied in new drug development for reducing the total number of drugs to be synthesized, as it involves a selection of the most desirable compound of interest. This technique was also applied in predicting in vivo performance of drug/s for various parameters. QSPR serves as a predictive tool to correlate structural descriptors of molecules with biological as well as physicochemical properties. Several researchers have contributed at different extents in this area to modify various properties of pharmaceuticals. The present review is focused on a study of different polymers that influence the transportability profiles of drugs along with the application of QSPR either to study different properties of polymers that regulate drug release or in predicting drug transportability from different polymer systems used in formulations.
Keywords: Drug; Polymer; Predictability; Transportability.