Abstract
Pickering emulsions are systems composed of two immiscible fluids stabilized by solid organic or inorganic particles. Pickering emulsions are particularly useful in cosmetics, where the surfactants are unwanted, as well as in the pharmaceutical field, where transdermal and/or dermal drug delivery is difficult to achieve and controlled drug release is desired. Here, we studied calcium carbonate particles as stabilizers of Pickering emulsions for topical use. An optimized formulation was obtained using a Quality by Design approach. First, a screening experiment was performed to identify the formulation and process critical variables that affect the quality properties of the Pickering emulsion. The optimization of the production was then studied by establishing the design space. The final formulation was hereinafter investigated regarding the pH, rheological properties, and in vitro cytotoxicity assays. The results showed the formulation had a pH compatible with human skin and a shear thinning behavior. Moreover, this formulation showed a strong network structure, with a suitable spreadability on the skin, allowing an easy application. The in vitro assays were performed to assess the potential cytotoxicity of the calcium carbonate-stabilized emulsion and the particles themselves, and the results revealed that the formulation did not significantly affect the cell viability. In conclusion, the use of calcium carbonate particles as a stabilizer ingredient contributed to achieve an eco-friendly Pickering emulsion.
Highlights
Pickering emulsions are liquid dispersed systems stabilized by solid particles instead of surfactants, which have been widely studied as an alternative to conventional emulsions [1]
In the issues cosmetic industry, it is very important to work with particles than 100 nm to of avoid particles is defined as a Normal–Gaussian and monomodal, and uniform
Thedistribution size distribution of particles is defined as a Normal–Gaussian and monomodal, stable, and uniform distribution size of the calcium carbonate (CC) particles used in this work ranged from 1.76 ± 0.03 (d10) to 10.11 ± 0.70 μm (d90), with
Summary
Pickering emulsions are liquid dispersed systems stabilized by solid particles instead of surfactants, which have been widely studied as an alternative to conventional emulsions [1]. Emulsions are widely used formulations in the pharmaceutical and cosmetic fields, but they are extremely challenging systems due to their thermodynamic instability [2] Despite these challenges, emulsions are efficient topical drug delivery systems (DDS), which can encapsulate both hydrophilic and lipophilic actives inside the dispersed phase, protecting these from degradation, while controlling their delivery [3,4]. Pickering in 1907 [6], who noticed the phenomenon that emulsions could be stabilized by small solid particles instead of surfactants This stabilization of the emulsions’ droplets is achieved due to the particles’ dual wettability: because their surface is partially wetted by water and partially by oil, they spontaneously accumulate at the oil–water interface, which is stabilized against coalescence by volume exclusion and steric hindrance [7,8,9]. If the particles are very lipophilic or very hydrophilic, θ will be very high or very low, respectively, and the particles will be dispersed in either the oil or aqueous phases, producing very unstable emulsions [3]
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