RESUMO
BACKGROUND: Ionic liquids (ILs) are ionic compounds with highly tunable and remarkable properties which make them an important candidate in multiple domains such as extraction, synthesis, analytics, catalysis, biotechnology, therapeutics as well as pharmaceutical sciences. OBJECTIVE: This review systematically highlights the classification, properties and toxicity of ionic liquids. It focuses on exploring the biological activity of ionic liquids, which includes antimicrobial and anticancer property along with an emphasis on the concept of Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient- Ionic Liquids (API-ILs) for explaining the emulsifier and solubility enhancement property of ILs. An elaborative discussion on the application of ILs for the development of oral, transdermal and topical drug delivery systems has also been presented with suitable literature support. CONCLUSION: Ionic liquids possess exceptional potential in the field of medicine, biology and chemistry.