Thymoquinone-Loaded Polymeric Films and Hydrogels for Bacterial Disinfection and Wound Healing.

The purpose of this study was to synthesize and characterize novel biocompatible topical polymeric film and hydrogel systems that have the potential to deliver the antibacterial agent thymoquinone (TQ) directly to the skin target site to manage the local wound infection and thereby wound healing. The polyvinyl pyrrolidone (PVP) matrix-type films containing TQ were prepared by the solvent casting method. In vitro skin permeation studies on human cadaver skin produced a mean flux of 2.

Evaluations of Quality by Design (QbD) Elements Impact for Developing Niosomes as a Promising Topical Drug Delivery Platform.

Topical corticosteroids are used to treat a variety of skin conditions such as allergic reactions, eczema, and psoriasis. Niosomes are a novel surfactant-based delivery system that may be used to deliver desoximetasone via topical product application in order to mitigate common side effects associated with traditional oral delivery routes. The aim of this research was to identify the critical material attributes (CMAs) and critical process parameters (CPPs) that impact key characteristics of drug-loaded niosomes using a systematic quality by design (QbD) approach.

Solubility-physicochemical-thermodynamic theory of penetration enhancer mechanism of action.

The hypothesis for the investigation was that the overall mechanism of action of skin penetration enhancers is best explained by the Solubility-Physicochemical-Thermodynamic (SPT) theory. To our knowledge, this is the first report of the application of SPT theory in transdermal/topical/enhancer research. The SPT theory puts forward the concept that the mode of action of enhancers is related to solubility parameters, physicochemical interactions and thermodynamic activity.

Effects of solvents and penetration enhancers on transdermal delivery of thymoquinone: permeability and skin deposition study.

Thymoquinone (TQ) is a quinone-based phytochemical that was first identified in 1963 in Nigella sativa (black cumin seed) by El-Dakhakhany. Based on the ideal characteristics of transdermal delivery, TQ is potentially an attractive candidate for transdermal drug delivery. The aim of this study was to investigate the feasibility of transdermal delivery of TQ and to assess the effect of an ethanol and propylene glycol donor solvent system along with various compositions of receptor solvents.

Strat-M® synthetic membrane: Permeability comparison to human cadaver skin.

The aim of this work was to investigate the correlation of permeation behavior of transdermal formulations through a novel synthetic membrane (Strat-M® EMD Millipore, MA) and human cadaver skin. Strat-M® membranes were designed with the intent to share similar structural and chemical characteristics found in the human skin however, omitting any biological behavior due to the absence of viable cells. Both human skin and the membrane display a layered structure with a very tight top layer.

Membrane properties for permeability testing: Skin versus synthetic membranes.

Synthetic membranes that are utilized in diffusion studies for topical and transdermal formulations are usually porous thin polymeric sheets for example cellulose acetate (CA) and polysulfones. In this study, the permeability of human skin was compared using two synthetic membranes: cellulose acetate and Strat-M® membrane and lipophilic and hydrophilic compounds either as saturated or formulated solutions as well as marketed dosage forms. Our data suggests that hydrophilic compounds have higher permeation in Strat-M membranes compared with lipophilic ones.