Neem Oil or Almond Oil Nanoemulsions for Vitamin E Delivery: From Structural Evaluation to in vivo Assessment of Antioxidant and Anti-Inflammatory Activity

Purpose: Vitamin E (VitE) may be classified in "the first line of defense" against the formation of reactive oxygen species. Its inclusion in nanoemulsions (NEs) is a promising alternative to increase its bioavailability. The aim of this study was to compare O/W NEs including VitE based on Almond or Neem oil, showing themselves antioxidant properties. The potential synergy of the antioxidant activities of oils and vitamin E, co-formulated in NEs, was explored. Patients and Methods: NEs have been prepared by sonication and deeply characterized evaluating size, ζ-potential, morphology (TEM and SAXS analyses), oil nanodroplet feature, and stability. Antioxidant activity has been evaluated in vitro, in non-tumorigenic HaCaT keratinocytes, and in vivo through fluorescence analysis of C. elegans transgenic strain. Moreover, on healthy human volunteers, skin tolerability and anti-inflammatory activity were evaluated by measuring the reduction of the skin erythema induced by the application of a skin chemical irritant (methyl-nicotinate). Results: Results confirm that Vitamin E can be formulated in highly stable NEs showing good antioxidant activity on keratinocyte and on C. elegans . Interestingly, only Neem oil NEs showed some anti-inflammatory activity on healthy volunteers. Conclusion: From the obtained results, Neem over Almond oil is a more appropriate candidate for further studies on this application. Graphical Abstract: Keywords: O/W nanodispersion, α-tocopherol, anti-inflammatory activity, HaCaT, C. elegans , healthy volunteers