Oleuropein as a novel topical antipsoriatic nutraceutical: formulation in microemulsion nanocarrier and exploratory clinical appraisal

ABSTRACT

Introduction: Oleuropein is a promising nutraceutical found in abundance in olive leaf, with reported antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, and hence could be a valuable treatment for dermatological diseases such as psoriasis.

Areas covered: In order to overcome the poor skin penetration of oleuropein, it was formulated in a microemulsion nanocarrier. The selected microemulsion formulation displayed a particle size of 30.25 ± 4.8 nm, zeta potential 0.15 ± 0.08 mV and polydispersity index 0.3 ± 0.08, with storage stability for 1 year in room temperature and total deposition in skin layers amounting to 95.67%. Upon clinical examination in psoriatic patients, the oleuropein microemulsion formulation was proven superior to the marketed Dermovate cream composed of clobetasol propionate, in terms of reduction of Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI) scores, as well dermoscopic imaging and morphometric analysis of the psoriasis lesions, in which oleuropein microemulsion exhibited marked improvement in the clinical manifestations of psoriasis.

Expert opinion: The findings of this study further prove the promising role of nutraceuticals, as well as nanoparticles in enhancing the therapeutic outcome of treatments, and open new era of applications in a variety of diseases.

KEYWORDS:

• Microemulsion
• oleuropein
• nanotechnology
• psoriasis
• clinical
• skin deposition

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank Gattefosse’ company for providing some of the chemicals used for the preparation of microemulsion.

Declaration of interest

M Nasr has received funding for this work from the Arab German Young academy of Sciences. The authors have no other relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript apart from those disclosed.

Author contributions

All authors were involved in the conception, design, analysis and interpretation of data, as well as drafting the paper and its critical revision. All authors agree to be accountable for all aspects of the work and they all approve the final version of the paper.

Reviewer disclosures

Peer reviewers on this manuscript have no relevant financial or other relationships to disclose.

Additional information

Funding

This research was implemented with the support of the Arab-German Young Academy of Sciences and Humanities (AGYA) which stands for research across disciplines and countries. AGYA draws on financial support of the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) grant [01DL20003].