Browsing by Author "Habbasha, El Sayed El"
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- Bioactive potential of chitosan–oleic acid nanoparticles loaded with lemon peel essential oil for topical treatment of vulvovaginal candidiasisPublication . Ibrahim, Faten M.; Shalaby, Eman Samy; Abdelhameed, Mohamed F.; El-Akad, Radwa H.; Ahmed, Kawkab A.; Abdel-Aziz, Mohamed S.; Habbasha, El Sayed El; Rodrigues, Cristina V.; Pintado, ManuelaThe rising incidence of vulvovaginal candidiasis (VVC) has been leading to the development of alternative antifungal therapies. This study aimed to develop a topical chitosan–oleic acid nanoparticle (CH-OA-NP) cream loaded with lemon peel essential oil (LPEO) for VVC treatment. The characterization of the optimal nanoparticle formulation (F4: 10 g/L CH, 2:1 OA/LPEO ratio) showed high encapsulation efficiency, stability, and controlled release. Moreover, it was characterized regarding its particle size, polydispersity index, zeta potential, and chemical/morphological profile. LPEO-related compounds (e.g., eriodictyol) were identified through LC-ESI-QqTOF-HRMS in the cream matrix, suggesting the preservation of LPEO potential bioactivities after formulation. In silico docking of 12 LPEO metabolites revealed that compounds such as citronellic acid exerted inhibitory effects against several inflammation-associated enzymes (e.g., 14-α-Demethylase). In vitro antimicrobial tests demonstrated remarkable activity against Candida albicans, Gram-negative (e.g., Escherichia coli), and Gram-positive (e.g., Staphylococcus aureus) bacteria. In vivo studies in a rat model of VVC revealed significant antifungal, anti-inflammatory, and immunomodulatory effects of the LPEO-CH-OA-NP cream (5% and 10%), leading to reduced MDA, MPO, and IL-1β levels and increased GSH activity. This novel formulation potentially offers a promising alternative therapy for VVC, addressing the current antifungal therapies’ limitations, counteracting drug resistance.
- Egyptian citrus essential oils recovered from lemon, orange, and mandarin peels: phytochemical and biological valuePublication . Ibrahim, Faten Mohamed; Mohammed, Reda Sayed; Abdelsalam, Eman; Ashour, Wedian El-Sayed; Magalhães, Daniela; Pintado, Manuela; Habbasha, El Sayed ElCitrus peels are an important by-product of citrus processing industries, but a large part is considered waste. There has been increased attention in the last five years on these industrial by-products, especially those containing residual essential oils (EOs). Lemon, orange, and mandarin peels from Egypt were subjected to hydro-distillation to obtain EOs, which were analyzed via mass spectrometry (GC/MS) and by building Global Natural Products Social Molecular Networking (GNPS-MN) for the purpose of visually exploring the volatile components of citrus species. The constructed MN revealed that D-Limonene, α-pinene, and β-pinene are the dominant volatile constituents in the three Egyptian citrus species. The EOs from three citrus peels exhibited promising activities as antioxidants using two tested methods: 1,1-diphenyl-2-picryl-hydrazil (DPPH) and nitric oxide (NO) compared with vitamin C. Lemon EO proved excellent antimicrobial activity against Gram-positive and negative bacteria. Additionally, the three citrus EOs showed good activities against the yeast Candida albicans. Regarding the anti-inflammatory assay, the three citrus EOs showed promising activities as COX-1 and COX-2 inhibitors. This study concludes that EOs extracted from citrus peel waste can be valorized as an innovative strategy for food preservation or may be incorporated in cosmetics and pharmaceutical formulations in alignment with circular economy principles.
- Formulation and characterization of non-toxic, antimicrobial, and alcohol-free hand sanitizer nanoemulgel based on lemon peel extractPublication . Ibrahim, Faten Mohamed; Shalaby, Eman Samy; El-Liethy, Mohamed Azab; Abd-Elmaksoud, Sherif; Mohammed, Reda Sayed; Shalaby, Said I.; Rodrigues, Cristina V.; Pintado, Manuela; Habbasha, El Sayed ElRecently, hand sanitization has gained attention for preventing disease transmission. Many on-the-market convenient dermal sanitizers contain alcohol, which can be detrimental to the skin. Therefore, three nanoemulgel formulations (LN-F1, LN-F2, LN-F3) incorporating lemon peel extract (LE), and with various increasing concentrations of xanthan gum as a gelling agent and stabilizer, were developed and characterized as a novel alternative. All formulations showed non-Newtonian shear-thinning flow behavior, particle size values below 200 nm, and increasing zeta potential with higher xanthan gum concentrations. All nanoemulgel formulations exhibited greater in vitro phenolic compound release than free LE. LN-F2 (1.0% LE, 20.0% mineral oil, 20.0% Span 80, 4.0% Cremophor RH 40, 4.0% PEG 400, 0.5% xanthan gum, 50.5% dH2O) was selected as the optimal formulation due to improved characteristics. LE and LN-F2 potential cytotoxicity was assessed on MA-104, showing no significant cellular morphological alterations up to 10 mg/mL for both samples. LN-F2 showed in vitro antimicrobial activity against E. coli, S. Typhimurium, P. aeruginosa, S. aureus, L. monocytogenes, and C. albicans, as well as antiviral activity against phiX 174, but no effect against rotavirus (SA-11). In vivo, LN-F2 presented a removal capacity of 83% to 100% for bacteria and 89% to 100% for fungi. These findings suggest that the formulated nanoemulgel holds potential as a safe and effective antiseptic, providing a viable alternative to commercial alcohol-based formulations.
- Polyphenol-rich extracts and essential oil from egyptian grapefruit peel as potential antioxidant, antimicrobial, and anti-inflammatory food additivesPublication . Ibrahim, Faten Mohamed; Abdelsalam, Eman; Mohammed, Reda Sayed; Ashour, Wedian El Sayed; Vilas-Boas, Ana A.; Pintado, Manuela; Habbasha, El Sayed ElGrapefruit (GF) processing generates significant nutrient and economic losses due to the production of 50% by-products, primarily peels. GF peels are a rich and sustainable source of bioactive compounds (BCs), such as essential oils (EOs) and phenolic compounds. Thus, finding value-added solutions based on a circular economy is paramount. This research aims to assess the antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and antimicrobial properties of a hydroethanolic polyphenol-rich extract from crude GF peels (GF-CE), essential oil (GF-EO), and polyphenol-rich extract from GF peels after essential oil extraction (GF-PE). The GF-CE and GF-PE showed high concentrations of naringenin (7.71 and 48.60 mg/g dry extract (DE)), narirutin (15.03 and 28.73 mg/g DE), and hesperidin (0.67 and 0.29 mg/mL), respectively. Extracting firstly EOs from GF improved the release of phenolic acids (p-coumaric, ferulic, and chlorogenic acid). The GF-CE exhibited stronger free radical scavenging activity mainly in DPPH (IC50 = 75.69 ± 0.81 µg/mL) than GF-EO (1271 ± 0.85 µg/mL) and GF-PE (113.45 ± 0.85 µg/mL). The GF-EO demonstrated moderate antimicrobial activity against Grampositive bacteria compared to the reference standard (amoxicillin) and strong activity against the yeast Candida albicans (inhibition zone of 16 mm). The major compounds in the GF-EO included D-limonene (25%), nootkatone (24%), and β-pinene (8%). Both polyphenol-rich extracts showed promising activities as COX1 and COX2 inhibitors with IC50 values of 25 ± 0.1 and 0.28 ± 0.00 µg/mL (compared to celecoxib (97.5 ± 0.1 and 0.31 ± 0.01 µg/mL) and indomethacin (6.25 ± 0.00 and 0.52 ± 0.01 µg/mL) as the standards), respectively. The study concludes that GF peels are a valuable source of BCs with significant bioactivities, offering a sustainable multi-cascade approach to recovering value-added compounds from GF peels in alignment with circular economy principles and open opportunities as functional ingredients for food applications.
- Unravelling the potential of Mediterranean citrus by-products: M.E.D.I.S.M.A.R.T. Project overviewPublication . Rodrigues, Cristina V.; Vilas-Boas, Ana A.; Magalhães, Daniela; Ibrahim, Faten Mohamed; Habbasha, El Sayed El; Pintado, ManuelaIntroduction: Citrus fruits, widely abundant and distributed worldwide, give rise to substantial by-product quantities, potentially reaching up to 120 million tons each year, being the Mediterranean region a key producer in this context. Specifically, within this geographical area, Portugal's citrus fruits cultivated under the Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) designation constitute a significant agricultural sector, which resulted in a production of approximately 398.83 thousand tons, in 2019 [1]. Nevertheless, the processing of these fruits results in significant waste materials such as seeds, peels, and pulp, which make up 45% to 50% of the fruit and contribute to environmental issues such as water and land pollution [2, 3]. This challenge is further exacerbated by the increasing global population, which exerts mounting pressure on our food systems. However, citrus by-products hold great promise as a source of bioactive ingredients, offering solutions to maximize food utilization, promote upcycling, and introduce innovative nutritional and health benefits [3]. This potential is especially evident in citrus peels, which are rich in valuable compounds like essential oils, fiber, and polyphenols. Objectives: Under the frame of the M.E.D.I.S.M.A.R.T. Project (Partners: UCP, NRC, SSICA, AMC, CRIFFC and Tarimaș) was aimed the development of a sustainable and integrative approach based on green chemistry principles to valorize different Mediterranean citrus by-products (orange; lemon, mandarin and grapefruit peels) in a way to promote circular economy within the industry.