Nanostructured Lipid Carriers Loaded with Essential Oil as a Strategy to Combat the Multidrug-Resistant .

The emerging pathogen  is an emerging fungal pathogen that was associated with nosocomial infectious outbreaks. Its worldwide incidence and the emerging multidrug-resistant strains highlight the urgency for novel and effective antifungal treatment strategies. essential oil (LSEO) proved antifungal activity, including anti-Candida. However, it may undergo irreversible changes when in contact with external agents without adequate protection. Herein, we encapsulated LSEO in nanostructured lipid carriers (NLC) through the hot emulsification method followed by sonication. NLC matrix was based on oleic acid and Compritol 888, or a combination of carnauba wax and beeswax, stabilized by sodium dodecyl sulfate. Eight formulations were produced and characterized by the determination of the particle size (213.1 to 445.5 nm), polydispersity index (around 0.3), and ζ-potential (-93.1 to -63.8 mV). The antifungal activity of nanoparticles and LSEO against and the in vivo toxicity in model were also evaluated. Both NLC and LSEO exhibited potent activity against the yeast, with Minimum Inhibitory Concentration between 281 and 563 µg/mL, and did not evidence toxicity in the in vivo model. Therefore, this study confirms the viability of NLCs loaded with LSEO in combating drug-resistant pathogens as a potential new therapeutic strategy for managing of candidemia.