Nanoemulgel formulation of a benzimidazole derivative for wound healing

Wound healing is complicated by the colonization of infected wound areas with bacteria. The emergence of antibiotic resistance caused by the irrational use of antibacterial medications presents a challenge for the treatment of wounds. Therefore, the development of new antibacterial molecules became a necessity. Consequently, in this study, a previously reported 1,2-disubstituted benzimidazole derivative was synthesized, loaded in a hyaluronic acid-based nanoemulgel dosage form, followed by characterization of the nanoemulgel in terms of particle size, polydispersity, zeta potential, stability to storage, ex vivo skin deposition, as well as in vivo wound healing potential. Results showed that the nanoemulsion displayed a particle size of 181.9 +/- 1.7 nm, poly-dispersity index of 0.32 +/- 0.02, and a zeta potential of-33.1 +/- 6.2 mV, and was stable upon storage for 3 months. The nanoemulgel formulation increased the skin deposition of the drug by more than 3 folds compared to the free drug. It also demonstrated superior wound healing activity compared to the marketed product containing silver sulfadiazine and hyaluronic acid, since it significantly reduced the levels of the biochemical markers MDA, TNF-alpha, IL-1 beta, and normalized the level of the marker SOD. This was confirmed by histopathological examination of the skin sections at different time intervals, in addition to the enhanced deposition of collagen fibers, and increased VEGF expression. Results of the study suggest that the nanoemulgel formulation loaded with the synthesized benzimidazole derivative was a suitable dosage form for wound healing.