Development of an anti-acne cream based on natural oils: Investigation of the effect of ingredients on rheology, texture properties, and physical stability

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Student Research Committee Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.

2 Medicinal Plants Processing Research Center, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.

3 Department of Pharmaceutics, School of Pharmacy, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.

4 Center for Nanotechnology in Drug Delivery, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.

10.30476/tips.2023.96614.1166

Abstract

Acne vulgaris is a very common skin problem. Cutibacterium acnes (formerly Propionibacterium acnes), a common skin organism, is most notably recognized for its role in acne vulgaris. Standard oral and topical treatments have significant side effects including skin irritation, indigestion, and also, cause resistance to antibiotics. In current study, o/w creams based on ostrich and sesame fixed oils containing Mentha piperita, Origanum vulgare and Lavandula officinallis essential oils as active ingredients were developed. The results showed that using Cetomacrogol 1000/Cetostearyl alcohol (CSA) as emulsifier/co-emulsifier could produce stable o/w creams containing 10-30 % w/w of fixed oils with various consistencies. Long-term (room temperature/24 months), accelerated (40 °C/ three months), thermocycling (-10 °C for 24h/40 °C for 24 hr) and centrifuge test (3000 rpm, 30 min at 50 °C) studies all showed the very high physical stability of the formulations. The rheological studies showed the shear-thinning thixotropic behavior of creams and Ostwald equation as the best model describing behavior of the creams. Texture analysis showed the significant effects of ingredients on creams hardness and adhesiveness having a reasonable correlation to spreadability test results. The results showed that aqueous and oil soluble thickening agents had the highest effect on rheological and texture parameters. Finally, the optimum cream was standardized using gas chromatography equipped to mass detector (GC-MS).   

Keywords


1.    Williams HC, Dellavalle RP, Garner S. Acne vulgaris. Lancet. 2012 Jan 28;379(9813):361-72. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(11)60321-8. Epub 2011 Aug 29. Erratum in: Lancet. 2012 Jan 28;379(9813):314. PMID: 21880356.
2.    Bhate K, Williams HC. Epidemiology of acne vulgaris. Br J Dermatol. 2013 Mar;168(3):474-85. doi: 10.1111/bjd.12149. PMID: 23210645.
3.    Thiboutot D, Gollnick H, Bettoli V, Dréno B, Kang S, Leyden JJ, et al. New insights into the management of acne: an update from the Global Alliance to Improve Outcomes in Acne group. J Am Acad Dermatol. 2009 May;60(5 Suppl):S1-50. doi: 10.1016/j.jaad.2009.01.019. PMID: 19376456.
4.    Yin NC, McMichael AJ. Acne in patients with skin of color: practical management. Am J Clin Dermatol. 2014 Feb;15(1):7-16. doi: 10.1007/s40257-013-0049-1. PMID: 24190453.
5.    Fox L, Csongradi C, Aucamp M, du Plessis J, Gerber M. Treatment Modalities for Acne. Molecules. 2016 Aug 13;21(8):1063. doi: 10.3390/molecules21081063. PMID: 27529209; PMCID: PMC6273829.
6.    Pawin H, Beylot C, Chivot M, Faure M, Poli F, Revuz J, Dréno B. Physiopathology of acne vulgaris: recent data, new understanding of the treatments. Eur J Dermatol. 2004 Jan-Feb;14(1):4-12. PMID: 14965788.
7.    Nasri H, Bahmani M, Shahinfard N, Moradi Nafchi A, Saberianpour S, Rafieian Kopaei M. Medicinal Plants for the Treatment of Acne Vulgaris: A Review of Recent Evidences. Jundishapur J Microbiol. 2015 Nov 21;8(11):e25580. doi: 10.5812/jjm.25580. PMID: 26862380; PMCID: PMC4740760.
8.    Palanisamy UD, Sivanathan M, Subramaniam T, Radhakrishnan AK, Haleagrahara N, Sundralingam U. Refining ostrich oil and its stabilization with curcumin. J Nutr Health Food Eng. 2015;2(2):63‒69.
9.    Kanlayavattanakul M, Lourith N. Therapeutic agents and herbs in topical application for acne treatment. Int J Cosmet Sci. 2011 Aug;33(4):289-97. doi: 10.1111/j.1468-2494.2011.00647.x. Epub 2011 Mar 15. PMID: 21401650.
10.    Zu Y, Yu H, Liang L, Fu Y, Efferth T, Liu X, Wu N. Activities of ten essential oils towards Propionibacterium acnes and PC-3, A-549 and MCF-7 cancer cells. Molecules. 2010 Apr 30;15(5):3200-10. doi: 10.3390/molecules15053200. PMID: 20657472; PMCID: PMC6263286.
11.    Tsai TH, Tsai TH, Wu WH, Tseng JTP, Tsai PJ. In vitro antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory effects of herbs against Propionibacterium acnes. Food Chem. 2010;119(3):964-8.
12.    Białoń M, Krzyśko-Łupicka T, Nowakowska-Bogdan E, Wieczorek PP. Chemical Composition of Two Different Lavender Essential Oils and Their Effect on Facial Skin Microbiota. Molecules. 2019 Sep 8;24(18):3270. doi: 10.3390/molecules24183270. PMID: 31500359; PMCID: PMC6767019.
13.    Avola R, Granata G, Geraci C, Napoli E, Graziano ACE, Cardile V. Oregano (Origanum vulgare L.) essential oil provides anti-inflammatory activity and facilitates wound healing in a human keratinocytes cell model. Food Chem Toxicol. 2020 Oct;144:111586. doi: 10.1016/j.fct.2020.111586. Epub 2020 Jul 15. PMID: 32679285.
14.    Taleb MH, Abdeltawab NF, Shamma RN, Abdelgayed SS, Mohamed SS, Farag MA, Ramadan MA. Origanum vulgare L. Essential Oil as a Potential Anti-Acne Topical Nanoemulsion-In Vitro and In Vivo Study. Molecules. 2018 Aug 28;23(9):2164. doi: 10.3390/molecules23092164. PMID: 30154336; PMCID: PMC6225355.
15.    Chuang LT, Tsai TH, Lien TJ, Huang WC, Liu JJ, Chang H, et al. Ethanolic Extract of Origanum vulgare Suppresses Propionibacterium acnes-Induced Inflammatory Responses in Human Monocyte and Mouse Ear Edema Models. Molecules. 2018 Aug 9;23(8):1987. doi: 10.3390/molecules23081987. PMID: 30096960; PMCID: PMC6222868.
16.    Zhao H, Ren S, Yang H, Tang S, Guo C, Liu M, et al. Peppermint essential oil: its phytochemistry, biological activity, pharmacological effect and application. Biomed Pharmacother. 2022 Oct;154:113559. doi: 10.1016/j.biopha.2022.113559. Epub 2022 Aug 19. PMID: 35994817.
17.    Aparna M, Gayathri V. Preparation of a Common Herbal Medicine with Culinary Plants  for Skin Infections Caused by Candida albicans AND Propionibacterium acnes. G.J.B.B. 2019; 8(2):235-40
18.    Happy AA, Jahan F, Momen MA. Essential Oils: Magical Ingredients for Skin Care. J Plant Sci. 2021;9(2):54-64.
19.     Guidelines on Stability testing of Cosmetic Products, The European Cosmetic and Perfumery Association (Colipa), March 2004;03/094 – MC. 
 20.    Ballmann C, Mueller BW. Stabilizing effect of cetostearyl alcohol and glyceryl monostearate as co-emulsifiers on hydrocarbon-free O/W glyceride creams. Pharm Dev Technol. 2008;13(5):433-45. doi: 10.1080/10837450802247952. PMID: 18728995.
21.    Simões A, Veiga F, Vitorino C. Developing Cream Formulations: Renewed Interest in an Old Problem. J Pharm Sci. 2019 Oct;108(10):3240-3251. doi: 10.1016/j.xphs.2019.06.006. Epub 2019 Jun 16. PMID: 31216450.
22.    Datta A, Tanmay VS, Tan GX, Reynolds GW, Jamadagni SN, Larson RG. Characterizing the rheology, slip, and velocity profiles of lamellar gel networks. J Rheol. 2020;64(4):851–62.
23.    Barry BW, Saunders GM. Rheology of systems containing cetomacrogol 1000—cetostearyl alcohol. I. Self-bodying action. J Colloid Interface Sci. 1972;38(3):616-25.
24.    Lukić M, Pantelić I, Savić SD. Towards Optimal pH of the Skin and Topical Formulations: From the Current State of the Art to Tailored Products. Cosmetics. 2021;8(3):69.
25.    Bittner Fialová S, Rendeková K, Mučaji P, Nagy M, Slobodníková L. Antibacterial Activity of Medicinal Plants and Their Constituents in the Context of Skin and Wound Infections, Considering European Legislation and Folk Medicine-A Review. Int J Mol Sci. 2021 Oct 4;22(19):10746. doi: 10.3390/ijms221910746. PMID: 34639087; PMCID: PMC8509446.
26.    Sarkic A, Stappen I. Essential Oils and Their Single Compounds in Cosmetics—A Critical Review. Cosmetics. 2018;5(1):11.