Oil/water (O/W) nanoemulsions developed from essential oil extracted from wildly growing Calotropis gigantea (Linn.) Aiton F.: synthesis, characterization, stability and evaluation of anti-cancerous, anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory and anti-diabetic activities

Abstract

Calotropis gigantea essential oil is utilized in outmoded medicine, therapeutics, and the cosmetic industries. However, the extreme volatility, oxidation susceptibility, and instability of this oil restricts its application. Thus, encapsulation is a more effective method of shielding this oil from unfavorable circumstances. The creation of oil/water (O/W) nanoemulsions based on Calotropis gigantea essential oil (CEO), known as CNE (Calotropis gigantea essential oil nanoemulsions), and an assessment of its biological potential were the goals of this work. UV, fluorescence, and FT-IR methods were used for physiological characterization. Biological activities, including anti-inflammatory, anti-diabetic, and anti-cancer effects. Studies on the pharmacokinetics of CNE were conducted. CNEs encapsulation efficiency was found to be 92%. The CNE nanoemulsions had a spherical shape with polydispersity index of 0.531, size of 200 nm, and a zeta potential of −35.9 mV. Even after being stored at various temperatures for 50 days, CNE nanoemulsions remained stable. Numerous tests were used to determine the antioxidant capacity of CNE, and the following IC50 values (µl/mL) were found: iron chelating assay: 18, hydroxyl radical scavenging: 37, and nitric oxide radical scavenging activity: 58. The percentage of HeLa cells that remained viable after being treated with CNE was 41% at a higher dose of 1 µl. CNE inhibited α-amylase in a dose-dependent manner, with 72% inhibition at its higher dose of 250 µL. Research on the kinetics of drugs showed that nanoemulsions showed Higuchi pattern. This research showed potential use of Calotropis gigantea oil-based nanoemulsions in the food, cosmetic, and pharmaceutical industries.