green chemistry extraction, formulation, development, and evaluation of saussurea obvallata nanoemulsion-based gel for wound healing potential

A wound is an injury to the body resulting from tearing, cutting, or piercing of the skin. several herbal medicines have been shown to accelerate the healing process. this study reports the development and evaluation of a nanoemulgel containing saussurea obvallata extract (4% w/v) to improve wound healing efficacy. the plant is known for its therapeutic phytoconstituents, and its incorporation into a nanoemulsion-based gel is designed to enhance skin permeability, solubility, and sustained release. the nanoemulsion was prepared using oleic acid, tween-20, and peg-400, and was converted into a gel by incorporating carbopol 940. among the formulations, neg 1 (nanoemulgel) showed optimum stability, with no phase separation and desirable physical properties confirmed by thermodynamic tests, including centrifugation, heating–cooling, and freeze–thaw cycles. the optimized nanoemulgel exhibited high clarity with 97.93% transmittance, a skin-compatible ph (5.10), satisfactory drug content (95.98%), appropriate viscosity (13,663 cp), and favorable spreadability (28.13 g.cm/sec). zeta potential analysis revealed a value of –45.3 mv, confirming good stability due to electrostatic repulsion. the in vivo wound healing activity was evaluated using an excision wound model in albino wistar rats. the nanoemulgel-treated group demonstrated significant wound contraction with complete epithelialization within 21 days, which was comparable to the standard treatment. overall, saussurea obvallata nanoemulgel shows strong potential as a novel and effective herbal therapeutic for wound management.