Development and In Vitro Assessment of Cumin Essential Oil Nanoemulsion and Nanoemulgel Formulations for Vaginal Candidiasis Vajinal Kandidiyazis İçin Kimyon Uçucu Yağı Nanoemülsiyon ve Nanoemülgel Formülasyonlarının Geliştirilmesi ve İn Vitro Değerlendirilmesi
Fabad Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences, cilt.51, sa.2, ss.555-572, 2026 (Scopus)
- Yayın Türü: Makale / Tam Makale
- Cilt numarası: 51 Sayı: 2
- Basım Tarihi: 2026
- Doi Numarası: 10.55262/fabadeczacilik.1867187
- Dergi Adı: Fabad Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences
- Derginin Tarandığı İndeksler: Scopus, EMBASE, Health Research Premium Collection (ProQuest), Pharma Collection (ProQuest)
- Sayfa Sayıları: ss.555-572
- Anahtar Kelimeler: Cumin essential oil, nanoemulgel, nanoemulsion, Taguchi Design of Experiments, vaginal candidiasis
- Açık Arşiv Koleksiyonu: AVESİS Açık Erişim Koleksiyonu
- Sağlık Bilimleri Üniversitesi Adresli: Evet
Özet
Vaginal candidiasis is a common mucosal infection caused by various Candida species, primarily Candida albicans. Increased drug resistance to current antifungal treatments, high recurrence rates, and local side effects necessitate the development of new and effective carrier systems. This study aimed to optimize nanoemulsions containing cumin (Cuminum cyminum) essential oil using a Taguchi Design of Experiments and to convert them into nanoemulgel dosage forms using alginate and carboxymethyl cellulose for the treatment of vaginal candidiasis. The chemical composition of cumin essential oil was determined by GC-FID/MS. Optimization of the nanoemulsions was carried out by targeting droplet size and polydispersity index. The nanoemulsions were additionally characterized by determining zeta potential, pH, and conductivity, and their physical stability was assessed over 30 days. The rheological behavior, spreadability, and ex vivo bioadhesion properties were also investigated. The in vitro antifungal activities of the formulations against Candida species were evaluated by determining their minimum inhibitory concentrations using the microbroth dilution method, and cytotoxicity on Vero cells was also assessed. The results showed that the optimum nanoemulsion exhibited a mean droplet size of 11 nm, a low PDI value, and good physical stability. Nanoemulgels containing 1.5% carboxymethyl cellulose exhibited better spreadability, whereas nanoemulgels containing 4.5% alginate exhibited higher bioadhesion. The nanoemulsion and nanoemulgel formulations were effective against all Candida strains. The toxicity of the nanoemulsion and nanoemulgel formulations was found to be significantly lower compared to free cumin essential oil (p < 0.001). In conclusion, the developed cumin essential oil-containing nanoemulsion and nanoemulgel formulations can be considered as promising and safe pharmaceutical candidates for the topical treatment of vaginal candidiasis.