Bioinspired, surface-engineered vesicular nanocarriers for controlled curcumin delivery and multifunctional biomedical evaluation

The development of novel therapeutic platforms is critical to overcoming chronic drug delivery difficulties such as poor solubility, restricted bioavailability, and continuous oxidative stress.To address these, a library of 15 curcumin-loaded niosomal formulations has been developed for curcumin delivery in a synergistic combination with zinc ions, cholesterol, oleic acid and plant-derived bioactive oils. These nanocarriers are designed to demonstrate adjustable architecture, high entrapment efficiency, and prolonged release profiles, while maintaining structural stability and biocompatibility. The strategic combination of PEGylation with cholesterol, oleic acid and essential oils, including black seed, tea tree, and sesame, yields enhanced antioxidant, antibacterial, and hypoglycemic effects, as demonstrated by a comprehensive array of bioassays. PEG-coated vesicles also showed favorable cytocompatibility and modified physicochemical properties. The combination of trace metals with phytochemicals may contribute to the modulation of oxidative and inflammatory pathways, as supported by the in vitro antioxidant and antibacterial results.The formulations showed high curcumin entrapment efficiencies of up to 93.7% and antioxidant activity of up to 93.9%. These findings demonstrate the potential of plant- and metal-integrated vesicular nanocarriers as multifunctional delivery systems with promising in vitro antioxidant, antibacterial, and glucose-modulating properties.