Developing Formulations for Drug Follicular Targeting: Nanoemulsions Loaded with Minoxidil and Clove Oil

July 2020 in “ Journal of drug delivery science and technology ”

Stephani Araujo Cardoso, Thaís Nogueira Barradas

minoxidil clove oil nanoemulsions alopecia areata ultrasonication follicular penetration topical treatment MXD AA

From the encyclopedia

Minoxidil →

An essential vasodilator with some anti-androgenic effects

Clove oil →

Alopecia Areata →

autoimmune disorder causing patchy hair loss

Studysummary This study found that nano-sized minoxidil formulations significantly increased skin penetration and follicular drug delivery for alopecia areata treatment, compared to conventional ethanol-based solutions, and demonstrated effective controlled release over six hours.

Our plain-language summary. Not medical advice or a treatment recommendation. Consult a qualified healthcare professional before changing treatment. Full disclaimer

The study aimed to develop and characterize nanoemulsions loaded with minoxidil (MXD) and clove oil for targeted drug delivery to hair follicles to optimize the treatment of alopecia areata (AA). Nanoemulsions were prepared using ultrasonication and evaluated through 11 experimental runs. The optimized formulations (NE 5, NE 6, and NE 8) demonstrated monomodal size distributions, mean droplet sizes of 10 nm, and stability at room temperature and 50% relative humidity. These nanoemulsions controlled drug release twice as effectively as conventional solutions for at least 6 hours and enhanced MXD skin penetration by over 9 times. Follicular penetration experiments revealed that the nanoemulsions delivered MXD into hair follicles more than 26 times more efficiently than control samples, indicating their potential as a promising topical treatment for alopecia.

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Research cited in this study

19 / 19 results

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