Chitosan-Coated Alginate Microcapsules Loaded with Herbal galactagogue Extract: Formulation Optimization and...

Area of Science:

• Pharmacognosy
• Materials Science
• Food Science

Background:

• Herbal galactagogues are traditionally used but have unpleasant taste and poor stability.
• Bioactive compounds like polyphenols and flavonoids contribute to taste and degradation issues.
• Microencapsulation is a promising technique for taste masking and stabilizing herbal extracts.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and optimize microcapsules for herbal galactagogue extracts.
• To improve palatability and stability of herbal galactagogue formulations.
• To investigate the effect of formulation parameters on encapsulation efficiency.

Main Methods:

• Emulsification/external gelation method for microcapsule preparation.
• Box-Behnken design to optimize sodium alginate, calcium chloride, and extract concentrations.
• Characterization of microcapsules using FTIR, particle size analysis, and in-vitro release studies.

Main Results:

• Optimized conditions yielded 77.97% encapsulation efficiency.
• Microcapsules exhibited spherical morphology with mean diameters of 52 μm (uncoated) and 123 μm (chitosan-coated).
• In-vitro release showed 48.1% in simulated gastric fluid and 80.11% in simulated intestinal fluid over 24 hours.

Conclusions:

• Microencapsulation effectively masks the taste and enhances the stability of herbal galactagogues.
• The developed microcapsules are suitable for incorporation into neutral pH matrices.
• This technology offers a viable approach for creating palatable and stable herbal supplements.