Development of Topical Niosomal Gel of Benzoyl Peroxide

Benzoyl peroxide is macrolide antibiotic used commonly for the treatment of acne either alone or in combination. But it suffers from side effects like skin redness, irritation, itching, and edema. Niosomes, a nonionic surfactant vesicular formulation, have been explored extensively for topical application to enhance skin penetration as well as to improve skin retention of drugs. In the present study, Benzoyl peroxide was entrapped into niosomes by thin film hydration technique, and various process parameters were optimized by partial factorial design. The optimized niosomal formulation was incorporated into HPMC K15 gel and extensively characterized for percentage drug entrapment (PDE) and in vitro release performance. The stability of above formulation was studied at different temperatures. The present study demonstrated prolongation of drug release, increased drug retention into skin, and improved permeation across the skin after encapsulation of benzoyl peroxide into niosomal topical gel.