Hydrophobic Deep Eutectic Solvent-Derived Curcuminoids Loaded into a Double-Layer Colloidal Delivery System:...

Area of Science:

• Food Science and Technology
• Natural Product Chemistry
• Biotechnology

Background:

• Hydrophobic deep eutectic solvents (HDESs) are recognized as eco-friendly extraction media for lipophilic compounds.
• Incorporating HDES-extracted compounds into delivery systems is an underexplored area.
• Turmeric (Curcuma longa L.) contains valuable curcuminoids with potential health benefits.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a curcuminoid-rich powder formulation from turmeric using HDESs.
• To evaluate the physicochemical properties, antioxidant activity, and in vitro cellular effects of the encapsulated curcuminoids.
• To investigate the potential of HDESs in advanced delivery systems for bioactive compounds.

Main Methods:

• Screening of 30 HDES systems for optimal curcuminoid extraction performance.
• Optimization of extraction parameters using Box-Behnken response surface methodology.
• Encapsulation of turmeric extracts into a powder via double-layer emulsification and spray-drying.

Main Results:

• The thymol/lactic acid HDES system (2:1 molar ratio) yielded the highest curcuminoid concentration (6692.12 ppm after optimization).
• The double-layer encapsulation achieved 87.33% curcuminoid encapsulation efficiency with a homogeneous particle distribution (PDI=0.282).
• The encapsulated powder showed significant ABTS radical-scavenging activity (81.57%) and reduced metabolic activity in prostate cancer and colorectal adenocarcinoma cell lines.

Conclusions:

• An integrated approach successfully produced a curcuminoid-rich powder with high encapsulation efficiency using HDESs and advanced formulation techniques.
• The developed turmeric powder exhibits promising antioxidant properties and potential cytotoxic effects against cancer cells.
• Further research is warranted to explore the technological and biological potential of this novel formulation.