Wound Healing Activity of Opuntia ficus-indica Fixed Oil Formulated in a Self-Nanoemulsifying Formulation

Abstract

Introduction: Delayed wound healing represents a common health hazard. Traditional herbal products have been often utilized to promote wound contraction. The current study aimed at assessing the wound healing activity of Opuntia ficus-indica seed oil (OFI) and its self-nanoemulsifying drug delivery system (OFI-SNEDDS) formula in a rat model of fullthickness skin excision. Methods: Based on droplet size, an optimized OFI-SNEDDS formula was prepared and used for subsequent evaluation. Wound healing activity of OFI and OFI-SNEDDS was studied in vivo. Results: The optimized OFI-SNEDDS formula droplet size was 50.02 nm. The formula exhibited superior healing activities as compared to regular OFI seed oil-treated rats at day 14 of wounding. This effect was further confirmed by histopathological examinations of H&E and Masson's Trichrome-stained skin sections. Moreover, OFI-SNEDDS showed the highest antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities as compared to OFI seed oil-treated animals. Both OFI and OFI-SNEDDS significantly enhanced hydroxyproline skin content and upregulated Col1A1 mRNA expression, accompanied by enhanced expression of transforming factor-beta (TGF-β). Further, OFI-SNEDDS improved angiogenesis as evidenced by increased expression of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). Conclusion: OFI possesses wound healing properties that are enhanced by self-emulsification of the oil into nano-droplets. The observed activity can be attributed, at least partly, to its anti-inflammatory, pro-collagen and angiogenic properties.

Appraisal on the Wound Healing Potential of Deverra tortuosa DC. and Deverra triradiata Hochst Essential Oil Nanoemulsion Topical Preparation

“…On the dorsal interscapular region of each rat, a 225 mm 2 (1.5 cm × 1.5 cm) full-thickness cutaneous square wound was made by removing a skin patch, and wounds were kept undressed until the end of the experiment ( Davoodi-Roodbordeii et al, 2019 ). Lidocaine hydrochloride (2%) containing 1: 80,000 epinephrine (4.4 mg/kg) was S.C injected into rats to reduce pain near the wound area immediately after wounding ( Koshak et al, 2021 ). To maintain aseptic conditions, bench surfaces and cages to be used were cleaned by wiping over with a wet cloth that had been soaked with a cleaning agent, followed by disinfection with 70% alcohol.…”

Local Drug Delivery Strategies towards Wound Healing

“…The fact that self-emulsifying drug delivery systems offer a significant interfacial area for the partitioning of the medication between oil and water is another benefit they have over straightforward oily solutions. Therefore, these systems may provide an improvement in the pace and amount of absorption as well as more consistent plasma concentration profiles for lipophilic medicines with dissolution-limited oral absorption [ 126 ].…”

An overview and update on the chemical composition and potential health benefits of Opuntia ficus‐indica (L.) Miller

“…Both the seed oil and its self‐nanoemulsifying formulation significantly enhanced hydroxyproline content in skin, upregulated Col1A1 mRNA expression, and enhanced transforming factor‐beta (TGF‐β) expression, while they significantly decreased tumor necrosis factor‐α (TNF‐α) and interleukin 6 (IL‐6) in wound tissues. The self‐nanoemulsifying formulation enhanced vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) expression, so it improved angiogenesis, and it also significantly enhanced SOD, GSH, and GPx wound tissue content (Koshak et al, 2021). Khémiri et al (2019) also reported in‐vivo cutaneous wound healing effects of the seed oil on a full‐thickness injury using an excisional wound healing model in rats through reducing the re‐epithelialization phase, enhancing the speed of wound contraction, and improving the external scar's aspect.…”