Search

A novel nanoparticle (NP) delivery system was designed for encapsulation of bioactive compounds for which quercetin was used as a model. A combination of almond gum (AG) and shellac as biopolymers using the antisolvent method was employed to fabricate the NPs. The influence of several significant preparation factors was investigated. Bare shellac particles showed extreme aggregation when exposed to pH 1.2 (gastric acid conditions), whereas the colloidal system containing 0.7% AG was capable to form NPs with particle size of 197nm with no sign of physio-chemical instability at pH 1.2 and with an encapsulation efficiency (EE) of 78%. Addition of small amounts of polysorbate 80 and Quillaja Saponin led to a drastic decrease in particle size to 90 and 116nm, respectively, with an encapsulation efficiency higher than 98%. The morphology characterization of the NPs with Cryo-SEM revealed that most NPs were spherical with rough surfaces, indicating that AG adsorbed onto the shellac surface as was also reflected by electrokineic measurements. DSC and FTIR analyses indicated that inclusion of quercetin within the NPs coincided with a transition from the crystalline to the amorphous state. To conclude, this study presented the formulation of promising nanocarriers applicable not only in the food but also in the pharmaceutical industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cinnamon and cocoa are known to be valuable sources of bioactive phytochemicals, mainly the polyphenols. This paper investigates the potential antioxidant activity of cinnamon and cocoa extract and the interaction of their mixtures by various in vitro tests. Moreover, the combination effect of their constituents in a binary mixture was studied. Two representative active compounds of chocolate (epicatechin, catechin) were combined with seven of cinnamon (gallic acid, tannic acid, quercetin, sinapic acid, cinnamic acid, eugenol and cinnamaldehyde) in multilevel ratios. The results indicate that the addition of the cinnamon extract significantly increased the antioxidant activity of the cocoa extract. The interaction ranged from synergetic to antagonistic. The interaction was less synergetic when cinnamon extract was added in higher proportion. The interaction of their constituents substantially influenced the antioxidant activity of the mixture and was dependent on the ratio. The kinetics’ study could elucidate how the polyphenols work in a mixture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• C. burmannii extracts contained various phenolic compounds. • The effect of the different extraction method was revealed. • Cryo-SEM analysis showed the cavitation effect of ultrasonic extraction. • Significant improvement on the antioxidant activity of white chocolate was found. This study aims at determining the potentials of cinnamon (Cinnamomun burmannii) extracts to improve the health-promoting properties of white chocolate. LC-HRMS analysis was employed to obtain information regarding the phytochemical content while the phosphomolybdenum, FRAP and DPPH assays were used to determine antioxidant activity of cinnamon extract. Furthermore, the cinnamon extract was loaded into nanoparticles before adding it to white chocolate. The results show that cinnamon extracts contained phenols up to 310 mg EE and possessed antioxidant activity up to 260 mg TAE per gram of dry extract depending on the extraction mode (i.e., traditional and ultrasonic-assisted method) and the solvent type. The cinnamon extract contained catechin, epicatechin, procyanidin B2, quercitrin, 3,4-dihydroxybenzaldehyde, protocatechuic acid and cinnamic acid at levels of 51, 53, 1396, 13, 1138, 228 and 934 µg/g of dry extract, respectively. The encapsulated cinnamon extract increased the phenolic content of white chocolate from 47.6 to 1060.6 µg EE/g. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to prepare stable shellac nanoparticles containing a cinnamon bark extract using xanthan gum by anti-solvent precipitation. The nanoparticles were characterized in terms of their gastric pH stability, surface charge, particle size and morphology. The effect of the cinnamon extract loading on the properties of the nanoparticles, including the encapsulation efficiency and antioxidant properties, were also investigated. Ultimately, the release behaviour and the thermal stability of the nanoparticles were established. The results showed that xanthan gum can stabilise shellac nanoparticles at gastric pH by electro-steric stabilisation. The morphological analysis of the nanoparticles by Cryo-SEM showed that spherical particles with a smooth outer surface were formed. A decrease in encapsulation efficiency was observed when a higher level of cinnamon extract loading was used. The bioparticles fortified with cinnamon extract exhibited antioxidant activity and ferric-reducing antioxidant power at the level of 185 mg tannic acid equivalent and of 127 mM ascorbic acid equivalent per gram dry weight of nanoparticles, respectively. From the release study, it was shown that more than 90% of cinnamon polyphenol was released at the intestinal pH. Nanoencapsulation effectively improved the thermal stability of the polyphenol-rich cinnamon extract. The polyphenol retention after heat treatment (90 °C, 20 min) was still higher than 90%. This study presents the formulation of cinnamon extract containing nanoparticles, which may be applicable in the food industry as a prospective antioxidant agent. Image 1 • Xanthan gum-shellac nanoparticles were fabricated using antisolvent method. • Xanthan gum increased stability of shellac nanoparticles at gastric pH. • Cinnamon bark extract containing polyphenols was encapsulated. • The content of the nanoparticles was released at simulated intestinal pH. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]