Crayfish chitosan for microencapsulation of coriander (Coriandrum sativum L.) essential oil

In this study, chitosan, which was obtained from the waste shells of crayfish (Astacus leptodactylus), was used for the encapsulation of the essential oil isolated from coriander (Coriandrum sativum L.) via the spray drying method. The obtained capsules were characterized using SEM, FT-IR, TGA and XRD. The size of the microcapsules was between 400nm - 7μm. It was determined that the swelling characteristic of the capsules was pH sensitive. The release showed bi-phasic characteristics and the maximum degree was reached after 72h. Antimicrobial activity studies showed that pure chitosan more effective than the capsule. The antioxidant activity was recorded concentration-dependent. In contrast the antimicrobial activity, antioxidant activity of the capsule was found much higher than the oil and the pure chitosan. Consequently, it was determined that this product could be used in the food and pharmaceutical industries as a natural antioxidant and antimicrobial agent.