Contribution of Nanotechnology In the Improvement of the Anti-Inflammatory activity of Shea butter.

Abstract

Unrefined shea butter is a vegetable fat that can be used for its anti-inflammatory properties related to its unsaponifiable fraction but also as excipient for various forms. In this study, the aim was to see how to take advantage of this dual status in order to improve the anti-inflammatory activity of shea butter through nanotechnology. In other words, it was to test the hypothesis of an improvement of the anti-inflammatory activity of unrefined shea butter when used in the form of nanoparticles and gel / nanoparticle system. The nanoparticles were prepared by a phase inversion method and had an average size of 400 nm with a poly dispersion index of 0.416, a zeta potential between -5 and -7mV and a pH around 5.3-5.4. The gel / nanoparticle complex was obtained by mixing the nanoparticles with a gel based on polyethylene glycol, water and HydroxyPropyl Methylcellulose. The mouse ear edema test was implemented for the evaluation of the antiinflammatory activity and the results showed a clear improvement of the latter. Indeed, the ratios (R) between the percentage inhibition of the anti-inflammatory activity (I) and the real percentage of shea butter used in the various preparations are respectively: crude shea butter (I = 62.52%; R = 0.62), nanoparticles (I = 60.80%, R = 1.05) and gel / nanoparticle complex system (I = 52.41, R = 6.38) (for the latter, the proportion of nanoparticles in the complex system was 4/24).

Formulation of shea butter Nanoparticle containing griseofulvin: a combination of antifungal and anti-inflammatory treatments

“…The size of the shea butter nanoparticles is thus controlled by the quantity of surfactants capable of stabilizing the water / shea butter interface. The greater the quantity of surfactant, the greater the potentially stabilized interface, and this for a constant quantity of shea butter 16 . Thus, by using this method, it was possible to obtain nanoparticles based on raw shea butter with a size of between 400 and 500 nm.…”

“…These vectors are classified according to the nature of the matrix used for their preparation. They are mainly based on lipids, synthetic polymers or biopolymers (polysaccharides and proteins) [14][15][16][17][18] .…”

“…The presence of unsaponifiables (sterols, phenolic compounds, etc.) gives shea butter antiinflammatory and antioxidant properties, which makes it interesting for medical and cosmetic applications 16,29 . In this context, the overall objective of this work relates on the one hand to the formulation of a vectorization system in the form of solid lipid nanoparticles (SLNs) based on shea butter.…”