Abstract
Amphoteric amphiphilic compounds, due to their unique properties, may represent a group of safe and biocompatible surface-active agents for effective colloidal stabilization of nanoformulations. For this reason, the aim of this work was to develop and characterize the oil-in-water nanoemulsions based on two betaine-derived surfactants with high biodegradability, i.e., cocamidopropyl betaine and coco-betaine. In the first step, we investigated ternary phase diagrams of surfactant-oil-water systems containing different weight ratios of surfactant and oil, as the betaine-type surfactant entity (S), linoleic acid, or oleic acid as the oil phase (O), and the aqueous phase (W) using the titration-ultrasound approach. All the received nanoemulsion systems were then characterized upon droplets size (dynamic light scattering), surface charge (electrophoretic light scattering), and morphology (transmission electron as well as atomic force microscopy). Thermal and spinning tests revealed the most stable compositions, which were subjected to further kinetic stability analysis, including turbidimetric evaluation. Finally, the backscattering profiles revealed the most promising candidate with a size <200 nm for potential delivery of active agents in the future cosmetic, pharmaceutical, and biomedical applications.
Highlights
Over recent years, the application of various colloidal formulations has attracted considerable interest in the field of nanomedicine, drug delivery, as well as pharmaceutical and cosmeceutical technology [1,2,3,4,5,6]
It has become very significant for conducting intensive research to develop novel and safe dispersion systems, whose appropriate kinetic stability and versatility will be able to improve the bioavailability of many drugs, by reducing their side effects as well as provide maximum application benefits, i.e., anti-aging, therapeutic, diagnostic, or conditioning [7]
According to the presented results, we have successfully prepared novel long-term oil-in-water nanoemulsions stabilized with biodegradable amphoteric surfactants, i.e., cocamidopropyl betaine and coco-betaine, via the complex titration-ultrasound homogenization approach
Summary
The application of various colloidal formulations (i.e., liposomes, solid lipid nanoparticles, micelles, nanoemulsions, nanocapsules, or nanospheres) has attracted considerable interest in the field of nanomedicine, drug delivery, as well as pharmaceutical and cosmeceutical technology [1,2,3,4,5,6]. By carefully designing them and selecting an appropriate preparation method and structure-building components, it is possible to obtain nanocarriers with extended circulation time in the bloodstream, which will provide their cargo to the target site It has become very significant for conducting intensive research to develop novel and safe dispersion systems, whose appropriate kinetic stability and versatility will be able to improve the bioavailability of many drugs, by reducing their side effects as well as provide maximum application benefits, i.e., anti-aging, therapeutic, diagnostic, or conditioning [7]. Nanoemulsions (NEs) ( defined as submicron emulsions, ultrafine emulsions, or miniemulsions) are nano-sized (20–500 nm) droplets emulsions that have gained popularity as safe and efficient nanostructured formulations in droplet engineering due to their increased surface-to-volume ratio, smaller particle size, and greater mobility, as well as enhanced stability and protection against premature degradation [1,8] They are transparent or translucent isotropic dispersions consisting of two immiscible water and oil phases. The NE fabrication method is critical to the final product, so its selection depends on the formulation’s composition and physicochemical properties required [10,14]
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