Penetration Profile and Irritation Index of Catechins Gambir Isolate Gel (Uncaria Gambir Roxb.) with Oleic Acid as Penetration Enhancer
Yuni Anggraeni*, Syifa Mufidah and Marvel

Program Study of Pharmacy, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universitas Islam Negeri Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta, Indonesia

Abstract

Catechins are known to have antioxidant activity that can be used to ward off free radicals in the skin. Catechins must be able to penetrate into the skin in order to provide optimum effect. Oleic acid is known to increase the penetration of several kinds of medicinal compounds with varying concentrations of use. In this study, catechins were formulated into gel preparations using oleic acid as a penetration enhancer at four concentrations (0%, 5%, 10%, 15%) to determine the optimum concentration to increase catechin penetration without causing skin irritation. Penetration testing was carried out with franz diffusion cells using rat skin membrane with a thickness of 0.6 mm and phosphate buffer pH 7.4 as a compartment medium. The irritation test was carried out using the Draize Test method on albino rabbits. The results showed that the penetration rate of catechins increased with increasing oleic acid concentration with the cumulative percent value of catechins penetrated at the 3rd hour for formulas with 0%, 5%, 10%, and 15% oleic acid concentrations, respectively, which were 34%, 46%, 50% and 59%. The results of the PII scoring (Primary Irritation Index) on the irritation test for all formula were 0 (irritation does not mean) which indicates that all formula did not irritate the skin. Thus, of the four tested formulas, the catechins gel formula with 15% oleic acid concentration was the most optimum formula to increase the penetration of catechins into the skin.

Keywords: Catechins, gel, oleic acid, penetration enhancer

Topic: Pharmaceutical Sciences