• A new strategy in improving therapeutic indexes of medicinal herbs: characterization of nano-liposomes containing Mentha piperita essential oil
  • Maryam Cheshmberah,1 Mohammad Javad Forouzani-Moghaddam,2,*
    1. MSc of Genetic, Sistan & Balochestan university, Zahedan, Iran
    2. Msc of Food Microbiology, School of Paramedical, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran


  • Introduction: Herbal Compound and their essential oils possess high antimicrobial, antioxidant, and anti tumor properties, but conventional prescribing of them faces serious challenges. Liposomal nano carrier is one of the common pharmaceutical strategies to overcome these challenges. In this study, slow released liposomal system containing Mentha piperita’s essential oil was prepared in order to improve its antimicrobial, antioxidant and antitumor properties.
  • Methods: Liposomal vesicles were prepared using phosphatidylcholine (80%) and cholesterol (20%) by thin film method. Mentha piperita’s essential oil were loaded into the liposomes using inactive loading method. Their physico chemical features were assayed using Zeta Sizer, FTIR and at the end, the essential oil release amount was calculated at 37° C.
  • Results: Liposomal vesicles containing Mentha piperita’s essential oil showed the size of 247 nm, 61.38% essential oil encapsulation efficiency, -34.54 mV of zeta potential and polydispersity index (PDI) of 0.32. The prepared liposomal system presented essential oil controlled release and FTIR investigation showed no interaction between nanocarrier and the essential oil and the carriers have spherical structures.
  • Conclusion: In the present study, Mentha piperita’s essential oil encapsulated in liposomal carriers and its physicochemical properties investigated. The results confrimed the slow releasing ability of system and also showed that the anionic nanosystem increased the essential oil’s stability without any change in its chemical nature. Taken together, liposomal nanocarrier could be a potent and suitable carrier for the essential oil.
  • Keywords: Liposome, therapeutic herbs, Mentha piperita, Plant Oils