Novel Nanocarrier for Melanoma Treatment: Chitosan-Gum Arabic Nanoparticles Containing Menthol

Melanoma is the most deadly skin disease; due to side effects and drug resistance, the development of natural medicines using nanotechnology has received much attention. This study proposed a two-step process for preparing chitosan-gum arabic nanoparticles loaded with menthol. Chitosan-gum arabic nanoparticles with a particle size of 53 ± 5 nm and zeta potential 37 ± 2 mV and chitosan-gum arabic containing menthol with a particle size of 160 ± 15 nm and zeta potential 43 ± 4 mV were prepared. Successful preparation and loading of menthol in nanoparticles were confirmed using ATR-FTIR and GC–MS analyses. Besides, their cytotoxic effects were investigated on A-375 melanoma cells; their IC₅₀ values were 74 (41–140) µg/mL and 29 (17–38) µg/mL. The high efficiency of the developed carrier (chitosan-gum arabic nanoparticles) and chitosan-gum arabic nanoparticles containing menthol makes them suitable candidates for further consideration and in vivo research.