Comprehensive In-Vitro, Ex-vivo and In-Vivo Assessment of Oxiconazole loaded Nanoemulgel

A BSTRACT Objective: The present work covers the preparation and investigation of nanoemulsion (NE)-based hydrogel, i.e. nanoemulgel (NEG) of an antifungal drug oxiconazole delivered topically. Method: High-speed homogenization was used to prepare the NE using clove oil, Tween 80, and propylene glycol as oil phase, surfactant, and cosurfactant, respectively. Ternary phase diagrams are constructed to determine the quantity of ingredients used to formulate NE. The prepared NEs were, thus, assessed for parameters such as pH, refractive index, electric conductivity, viscosity, spreadability, polydispersity index, and zeta potential. The NE possessing the best characteristics and is optimized and converted into a NEG by distributing the NE into a suitable gel base, such as Carbopol 934P and guar gum. The gel base was prepared by distributing 2%, 3%, and 4% of the gelling agent into water and kept aside overnight. The NEGs formulated are, thus, evaluated for physicochemical characteristics, in vitro diffusion, ex vivo permeation studies, and antifungal studies. Results: Hence, FO1, composed of 2% Carbopol 934P and exhibiting a drug release of 97.38% ± 0.64% over 12 hours, was identified as the optimized formulation based on its physicochemical properties and drug release profile. Conclusion: From the above research it was concluded that the prepared nanoemulgel of Oxiconazole has been a promising candidate to deliver the drug topically for a stipulated time period.