Synthesis and evaluation of UV cross-linked Poly (acrylamide) loaded thymol nanogel for antifungal application in oral candidiasis

Oral candidiasis is an infection that occurs inside of the cheek and oral cavity which is very painful. Treatment of oral candidiasis is very important for its commonness and the inadequate medication options are available for the treatment. Synthesis and evaluation of Poly (acrylamide) loaded thymol nanogelalternative for conventional creams was the main aim of this study. Polyacrylamide nanogel was synthesized from acrylamide monomer using N, N’-methylene bisacrylamide (cross-linker) and Irgacure (initiator) by UV induced cross-linking. Variation of reaction parameters such as cross-linker, initiator, light intensity, and exposure time has been used for the optimization. Nanogel characteristics were evaluated through the In vitro drug release, Ex vivo permeation study, FTIR Spectroscopy, FESEM, and antifungal activity. From the results, the drug release was found 75.47% to 99.62%, while viscosity was observed in therange of 76.68 to 34.44 cps. The contour plots shows that when cross-linker concentration varied from 0.12 w/v to 0.68 w/v, viscosity was increased from 34.44 cps to 76.68 cps with respect to UV curing time. The particle size distribution of nanogel was observed from 18.17 to 142.2 nm with average particle size of 132 nm and polydispersity index 0.4. Nanogel incorporated with thymol could be a new approach for topical delivery of thymol for antifungal activity compared to conventional cream.