Development, Optimization, and In Vitro/In Vivo Evaluation of Azelaic Acid Transethosomal Gel for Antidermatophyte Activity

This study investigates the antidermatophyte efficacy of Azelaic acid (AzA) when encapsulated in transethosomes (TEs) and incorporated into a gel. The optimized AzA-TEs formulation demonstrated a mean particle size of 219.8 nm, a zeta potential of -36.5 mV, and an entrapment efficiency of 81.9%. In vitro tests showed that AzA-TEs had significantly greater antidermatophyte activity compared to free AzA, with a MIC90 of 0.01% for <i>T. rubrum</i> and 0.032% for <i>T. mentagrophytes</i> and <i>M. canis</i>. In vivo, the AzA-TEs achieved an 83% mycological cure rate in the <i>T. mentagrophytes</i> model, outperforming itraconazole and free AzA. The study concludes that TEs are a promising carrier for delivering AzA into deeper skin layers, enhancing its antidermatophyte activity.