Research Progress in Essential Oil Nanodelivery Systems

Abstract

Essential Oil (EO) is widely usedin medicine because of its antioxidant, antiinflammatory, antibacterial, antimicrobial, and antiviral properties. However, the hydrophobicity, volatility, instability, and potential toxicity of EO make it difficult to achieve efficient delivery in vivo, which limits its application. In recent years, nano drug delivery systems have been gradually applied to encapsulate EO to improve their physical and chemical properties. In order to further improve the delivery efficiency of EOs, this review summarized the commonly used nano delivery systems for EOs, analyzed their preparation principles, and listed the factors affecting the delivery efficiency of essential oils. Moreover, the challenges faced by the EO delivery system are sorted out, and the corresponding solutions are proposed, with the hope of indicating the development direction for expanding the application of the nano drug delivery system in EO.