Physicochemical, rheological and antifungal evaluation of miconazole nitrate organogels for topical delivery

Topical preparations have a problem of being wiped off after a short time, which results in low activity of the active moiety. In this research, topical organogels (OGs) were prepared with different oils for the controlled action of miconazole nitrate. Various oils were checked for their gel-forming ability. Controlled release OGs were prepared with a 15% concentration of glyceryl monostearate. Differential scanning calorimetry was performed to study the thermal behavior of gels. X-ray diffraction revealed that the drug was changed into an amorphous form from the crystalline form. The absence of any interaction between the active ingredient and excipients was concluded by Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy. Permeability studies were carried out with cellulose acetate membrane by using Franz diffusion cell containing phosphate buffer saline pH 7.4. The release of drug followed the Weibull model. A frequency sweep test was performed to study the rheological behavior of optimized formulations. Rheology revealed the true nature of formulations whether they are gels or just viscous fluids. Images of scanning electron microscopy showed a network formed by the gelator molecules. The antifungal activity was checked against C. albicans and A. niger and it was best by the formulation made by TT. It was concluded that all the OGs gave controlled topical antifungal action.