Tiny Nanocarriers Could Target Acne

In a study led by the University of South Australia (UniSA), a new antibacterial compound known as Narasin was encased in tiny, soft nanoparticles 1000 times smaller than a single strand of human hair and applied in a gel form to targeted acne sites.

The drug proved successful against drug-resistant acne bacteria and delivered via nanocarriers achieved a 100-fold increase in absorption than simply taken with water.

Lead author UniSA PhD student Fatima Abid says this is the first time that nano-micelle formulations of Narasin have been developed and trialed.

“Acne severely impacts approximately 9.4% of the world’s population, mainly adolescents, and causes distress, embarrassment, anxiety, low self-confidence and social isolation among sufferers,” Abid says.

“Although there are many oral medications prescribed for acne, they have a range of detrimental side effects, and many are poorly water soluble, which is why most patients and clinicians prefer topical treatments.”

Abid’s supervisor, pharmaceutical scientist Professor Sanjay Garg, says a combination of increasing antibiotic resistance and the ineffectiveness of many topical drugs to penetrate hair follicles in acne sites means there is a pressing need to develop new antibacterial therapies that are effective and safe.

Narasin is commonly used for bacterial infections in livestock but has never been previously investigated as a viable treatment for acne.

Abid, Prof Garg and researchers from UniSA, the University of Adelaide, and Aix-Marseille Université in France also investigated how well Narasin encased in nanoparticles penetrated various layers of skin, using pig’s ear skin as a model.

“The micelle formulation was effective in delivering Narasin to acne targets sites, as opposed to the compound solution which failed to permeate through skin layers,” Prof Garg says.

Sources:

Fatima Abid, Bhumika Savaliya, Ankit Parikh, Sangseo Kim, Marzieh Amirmostofian, Laura Cesari, Yunmei Song, Stephen W. Page, Darren J. Trott, Sanjay Garg. Nanotechnology and narasin: a powerful combination against acne. Nanoscale, 2023; 15 (33): 13728 DOI: 10.1039/D3NR01789C

University of South Australia. “Tiny nanocarriers could prove the magic bullet for acne sufferers.” ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 14 September 2023. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/09/230914103340.htm>.

Materials provided by University of South Australia. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.

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