Quality-by-Design-Assisted Optimization of Carvacrol Oil-Loaded Niosomal Gel for Anti-Inflammatory Efficacy by Topical Route

Abstract

Niosomes are multilamellar vesicles that effectively transfer active ingredients into the skin’s layers. To improve the active substance’s penetration across the skin, these carriers are frequently utilized as topical drug delivery systems. Essential oils (EOs) have garnered significant interest in the field of research and development owing to their various pharmacological activities, cost-effectiveness, and simple manufacturing techniques. However, these ingredients undergo degradation and oxidation over time, leading to a loss of functionality. Niosome formulations have been developed to deal with these challenges. The main goal of this work was to create a niosomal gel of carvacrol oil (CVC) to improve its penetration into the skin for anti-inflammatory actions and stability. By changing the ratio of drug, cholesterol and surfactant, various formulations of CVC niosomes were formulated using Box Behnken Design (BBD). A thin-film hydration technique using a rotary evaporator was employed for the development of niosomes. Following optimization, the CVC-loaded niosomes had shown: 180.23 nm, 0.265, −31.70 mV, and 90.61% of vesicle size, PDI, zeta potential, and EE%. An in vitro study on drug release discovered the rates of drug release for CVC-Ns and CVC suspension, which were found to be 70.24 ± 1.21 and 32.87 ± 1.03, respectively. The release of CVC from niosomes best fit the Higuchi model, and the Korsmeyer–Peppas model suggests that the release of the drug followed the non-Fickian diffusion. In a dermatokinetic investigation, niosome gel significantly increased CVC transport in the skin layers when compared to CVC–conventional formulation gel (CVC-CFG). Confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM) of rat skin exposed to the rhodamine B-loaded niosome formulation showed a deeper penetration of 25.0 µm compared to the hydroalcoholic rhodamine B solution (5.0 µm). Additionally, the CVC-N gel antioxidant activity was higher than that of free CVC. The formulation coded F4 was selected as the optimized formulation and then gelled with carbopol to improve its topical application. Niosomal gel underwent tests for pH determination, spreadability, texture analysis, and CLSM. Our findings imply that the niosomal gel formulations could represent a potential strategy for the topical delivery of CVC in the treatment of inflammatory disease.

Ophthalmic Bimatoprost-Loaded Niosomal In Situ Gel: Preparation, Optimization, and In Vivo Pharmacodynamics Study

“…These findings might be ascribed, at least in part, to the increase in the Span 60 concentration , which would help in enhancing the drug solubilization and thereby boosting drug entrapment within niosomal vesicles. Similar findings were disclosed by Ghazwani et al who underscored the synergistic effect of the surfactant concentration on the entrapment of carvacrol oil with niosomal vesicles [40].…”

“…The in vitro release profiles of optimized BMT-loaded niosomal dispersion, BMT solution, and BMT-ISG formulation (F4) were graphically illustrated in Figure 5. Free BMT showed a rapid release from BMT solution, with ~90% of BMT released at 4 h. By contrary, the encapsulation of BMT within niosomal vesicles significantly delayed BMT release for up to 24 h. BMT-loaded niosomes demonstrated a biphasic release profile, with ~50% of the entrapped BMT released from niosomes during the first 6 h, followed by a sustained drug release over 24 h, with up to 80% of BMT released at 24 h. The initial quick release of BMT might be caused by the rapid release of BMT from the niosome surface, whist the subsequent sustained release phase could be owed to the slow diffusion of drug molecules through niosomal bilayers [40]. Of interest, incorporating BMT-loaded niosomes into ISGs had significantly the sustained drug release, compared to that from parent niosomes.…”

Carboxymethyl Chitosan/Sodium Alginate/Chitosan Quaternary Ammonium Salt Composite Hydrogel Supported 3J for the Treatment of Oral Ulcer

“…The secondary cross-linking of sodium alginate and CMCS in CMCS-SA-AmCS-SA may cause partial or complete removal of acetyl group of CMCS, resulting in the weakening or the disappearance of acetyl group peak. The peak near 1600.0–1750.0 cm −1 indicates that deacetylation may have occurred [ 34 ]. The sharp peak of CMCS-SA-AmCS-SA hydrogel at 3286.0 cm −1 indicates that the SA content increases, more hydroxyl groups are introduced, the hydroxyl peak is significantly enhanced, and the hydrophilicity is increased [ 35 ].…”

Quality by Design-Optimized Glycerosome-Enabled Nanosunscreen Gel of Rutin Hydrate

“…A high zeta potential value, exhibiting both positive and negative charges, indicates enhanced stability of the nanoparticles. Based on the available evidence, it can be inferred that GMs exhibit a high degree of stability [14]. and 2% of glycerol were included.…”