Background: Utilizing pomegranate peel as an antibacterial agent in topical formulations presents an opportunity for optimization through innovative drug delivery systems, notably encapsulating extracts and fractions within a nanoemulgel. Objective: This study aimed to formulate ethanol extract and ethyl acetate fraction of pomegranate peel into nanoemulgels and assess their antibacterial activity against skin disease-causing bacteria. Methods: The methodology encompassed extraction, formulation, testing, and antibacterial assays involving maceration and fractionation using ethanol and ethyl acetate solvents. The physical properties and antibacterial efficacy of the nanoemulgels were evaluated. Results: Nanoemulsions derived from pomegranate peel ethanol extracts and ethyl acetate exhibited promising attributes, demonstrating 98.27 % and 98.77 % transmittance levels and zeta potentials of 0.18 mV and 0.32 mV. The nanoemulgel with ethanol had a pH of 6.62 ± 0.02, 6.86 ± 0.01, 6.3 ± 0.01 in 0.5 %, 1 %, and 1.5 % concentrations. For nanoemulgels with ethyl acetate, the pH levels for concentrations 0.5 %, 1 %, and 1.5 % are 6.58 ± 0.00, 6.80 ± 0.01, and 6.94 ± 0.01, respectively. These nanoemulgels displayed consistent odour, colour, and homogeneity characteristics, highlighting their suitability for topical application. The adhesion, spreadability, and viscosity assessments showed concentration-dependent variations, influencing effectiveness and user comfort. Notably, these nanoemulgels displayed substantial potential as antimicrobial agents against S. aureus and S. epidermidis bacteria in inhibitory assays, signalling promise for addressing skin infections. Conclusion: Overall, the study underscores the potential of nanoemulgels derived from pomegranate peel extracts as a natural alternative for topical antimicrobial therapy against skin infections.

Purpose: Diabetic somatic neuropathy is one of the most prevalent complications in type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1D). Many treatments were investigated to alleviate the pain associated with this condition. Capsaicin is a naturally occurring lipophilic alkaloid that proved to be an effective and safe treatment of chronic painful disorders. Despite the known therapeutic benefits of capsaicin, the conventional topical formulations have limited bioavailability. Therefore, the current study aims to develop capsaicin nanoemulgel to increase skin permeation and enhance its activity against neuropathic pain. Methods: Low-energy emulsification method was used to prepare nanoemulsions, using eucalyptus oil as the oily phase, Tween 80 as a surfactant, propylene glycol, ethanol and isopropyl alcohol as co-surfactants. Pseudo-ternary phase diagrams were constructed to investigate and optimize the formulation. Subsequently, the optimum formulation was formulated as a nanoemulgel and investigated for, skin permeation using Franz diffusion cell, and diabetic neuropathy (DN) management using alloxan-induced diabetic mice. Results: The selected nanoemulsion containing 0. 05% capsaicin is composed of 8 % oil, 24 % Smix (Tween 80: isopropyl alcohol 2: 1 w/w) and 68 % water. It is characterized by nanosized globules (28. 15 ±,0. 24 nm) with a relatively low polydispersity index (0. 27 ±,0. 05). The nanoemulgel revealed circa 4-fold increase in capsaicin cumulative permeation when compared to the conventional gel, and an improvement in its antinociceptive properties was observed in the treated diabetic mice (P < 0. 05). Conclusion: The selected capsaicin nanoemulgel would be a promising transdermal formulation that may alleviate diabetic neuropathy in T1D patients.

Objective(s): Antimicrobial resistance emerged as a global challenge owing to limited therapeutic options to control infections. Pseudomonas aeruginosa, an MDR pathogen already developed resistance against many conventional antibiotics. An “ anti-virulence strategy” that targets bacterial virulence rather than growth proves effective against drug-resistant pathogens. Materials and Methods: Here, we used a structure-based drug design approach to identify lead molecules using the LasR receptor protein of P. aeruginosa as a target responsible for virulence production in this bacterium. From the identified hits, we developed lead-based nanoformulation and investigated its effectiveness for treating the P. aeruginosa associated surface-infection in-vivo. First, TC-based nanoemulsions were fabricated by high-pressure homogenization and evaluated for various in vitro parameters. The optimized nanoemulsions were thereby utilized to prepare NEG. Results: The nanoemulsion (F3) exhibited low droplet size (51. 04± 1. 88 nm), PDI (0. 065± 1. 14), and negative zeta potential (-33. 65± 0. 82 mV). In animals, topical application of NEG-3 demonstrated significant improvement on skin permeability (459± 10. 17 μ g), drug influx (18. 99± 0. 76 μ g/cm2 hr), and repressed the CFU of P. aeruginosa induced-surface infection (P≤ 0. 001). The histology of rat skin demonstrated a significant effect for groups treated with TC-based NEGs as compared with a negative control group, whereas no significant effect was seen on rat liver indicating low systemic exposure to the drug. Also, NEG3 showed no significant changes under different stability conditions after 3 months. Conclusion: TC-based NEGs open up the possibility of a more effective way to combat serious surface infections caused by P. aeruginosa.

Background: The aim of the present study was to characterize and evaluate the nanoemulgel (NEG) of snakehead fish powder (SFP), as a transdermal delivery system for poorly water soluble drug, in order to conquer the inconveniences related to its oral conveyance. Methods: Diverse nanoemulsion components (oil, surfactant, and co-surfactant) were chosen based on solvency and emulsification capacity. SFP loaded nanoemulsion which tested by stress-stability testing was carried out for all formulations and those that passed these tests were characterized for mean droplet size, polydispersity index (PDI), zeta potential, pH, viscosity, and transmittance. After that, this was continued by permeation studies using snake skin in vitro and rabbit skin in vivo studies i. e. skin irritation study and the effectiveness test. Results: Mean droplet size and zeta potential of the optimized nanoemulsion (NE4) were found to be 98. 6 ± 0. 93 nm (polydispersity index, PDI = 0. 1 ± 0. 20) and-57. 5 ± 0. 3 mV respectively. Optimized nanoemulsion was converted into nanoemulgel with 1. 5% w/v of gelling agent (HPMC) and evaluated for pH, viscosity, spreadability, and extrudability measurement. Ex vivo transdermal permeation value for SFP through snake skin as membrane from NEG1, NEG2, NEG3 and marketed SFP cream showed results of 55. 65 ± 0. 93%, 56. 14 ± 0. 70%, 66. 75 ± 1. 03% and 49. 80 ± 3. 42% respectively in 3 hours. Moreover, all the treatment group did not show skin irritation of each group. The effect of burn wound healing of NEG3 showed a significant (P<0. 05) on the measurement of wound area compared to marketed cream. Conclusion: The novel NEG of SFP was successfully formulated for transdermal application based on the results of evaluations and stability tests on accelerating burn wound healing.

Many tubular joints commonly found in offshore jacket structures are multi-planar. Investigating the effect of loaded out-of-plane braces on the values of the stress concentration factor (SCF) in offshore tubular joints has been the objective of numerous research works. However, due to the diversity of joint types and loading conditions, several quite important cases still exist that have not been studied thoroughly. Among them are internally ring-stiffened multi-planar XT-joints subjected to axial loading. In the present research, data extracted from the stress analysis of 81 finite element (FE) models, verified using experimental test results, was used to study the effects of geometrical parameters on the chord-side SCFs in multi-planar tubular XT-joints reinforced with internal ring stiffeners subjected to two types of axial loading. Parametric FE study was followed by a set of the nonlinear regression analyses to develop four new SCF parametric equations for the fatigue analysis and design of axially loaded multi-planar XT-joints reinforced with internal ring stiffeners.

Pregnancy is highly anticipated by women, but it often leads to persistent issues like Striae Gravidarum (SG), which affects 70-90% of pregnancies. SG is characterized by atrophic stretching that disrupts skin barrier function and increases Transepidermal Water Loss (TEWL). Virgin Coconut Oil (VCO) contains oleic, linoleic, caproic, and capric acids, along with vitamins A, C, and E, which serve as moisturizers that help restore skin barrier function, as marked by the reduction of TEWL. This study aims to assess the effectiveness of VCO nanoemulgel in reducing TEWL to prevent SG in Mus musculus. This true experimental study involved 35 mice, of which 28 were pregnant and included in the analysis, while 7 served as non-pregnant controls. The treatment group received VCO nanoemulgel twice daily during pregnancy, applying 1 mL. TEWL was measured using a Tewameter® TM 300, and SG was scored using the Davey Score. Statistical analysis included the Kruskal-Wallis test, Mann-Whitney post hoc test, and Spearman correlation test. VCO nanoemulgel significantly reduced TEWL values (p<0.05), with a mean TEWL of 23.900 in the positive control (K+) group versus 8.900 in the P2 group (150 µg/ml dose). SG scores also decreased significantly (p<0.05), with a mean SG score of 15.14 in K(+) compared to 5.00 in P2. Post-hoc analysis showed significant differences between the P2 group and both control groups in TEWL and SG scores. A correlation between TEWL and SG was found with p<0.05 and r=0.483. VCO nanoemulgel at a dose of 150 µg/ml shows promise in reducing TEWL values, potentially preventing SG in Mus musculus. These findings warrant further investigation to confirm the efficacy and mechanisms of VCO nanoemulgel in SG prevention.