Development of Nanoemulsions for Topical Application of Mupirocin

Alhasso, Bahjat

Abstract

Mupirocin (MUP) is a topical antibacterial agent used to treat superficial skin infections but has limited application due to inactivation inside the human body through binding to blood protein. Nanotechnology is an approach that attracted researchers to use it in order to formulate MUP for topical application. Nanoemulsions are nanoscale carriers used to deliver MUP efficiently into the skin. In this study, innovation was performed in nanoemulsion formulation by using essential oil such as eucalyptus oil (EO) and eucalyptol (EU) as an oil phase and synergistic aid of skin permeation. The process involved combining the oil phase with the water phase and stabilising this mixture with the aid of a substance called surfactant using an ultrasonic homogeniser. The results have shown stable nanoscale-size droplets containing MUP in nanoemulsion form with higher skin permeation as compared to the marketed control product (Bactroban® cream). The inclusion of EU and EO increased the skin permeation of MUP in 2-fold and half-fold, respectively as compared to the control. In addition, the amount of MUP detected in the skin after 8 hours of application is higher with EU-based nanoemulsion while after 24 hours of application, it is higher with EO-based nanoemulsion as compared to the control. Pharmaceutically, this is important to design nanoformulations for both acute and chronic management of topical infections by choosing the appropriate essential oil, while economically, it may be possible to use cheap crude essential oil to formulate an advanced pharmaceutical formulation.

• Online Publication Date: Jul 2, 2023
• Publication Date: Jul 2, 2023
• Deposit Date: Jan 23, 2025
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.17866/rd.salford.23608299.v1
• Publisher URL: https://salford.figshare.com/articles/poster/Development_of_Nanoemulsions_for_Topical_Application_of_Mupirocin/23608299
• Collection Date: Jul 2, 2023