Formation and characterization of zein electrosprayed nanoparticles containing bioactive compounds

The objective of this work is to investigate the nanoencapsulation of valuable bioactive compounds with the innovative electrohydrodynamic technology. More specifically, electrospraying, was applied for the encapsulation of three different active agents with lipolytic, anti-aging and antioxidant activity: Deoxycholic acid (DCA), olive leaves’ enzymatically modified extract and a hybrid of Deoxycholic acid-Hydroxytyrosol (DCA-HXT) in zein (ZN) biodegradable polymer. The resulting powders were evaluated regarding the system's: compositional and chemical characteristics, thermal stability and humidity effect, morphology, shape and size, encapsulation efficiency and release kinetics from the wall material. Encapsulation led to stable nanosystems, regarding the moisture and temperature effect, with high glass Transition Temperatures (Tg between 130-139 °C), and a mean particle size of 400-600 nm. Finally, high encapsulation efficiencies (DCA= 84.01%, DCA-HXT = 79.34% and modified extract =80.75%) and long-term release profiles (DCA=192 h, DCA-HXT=228 h and mod. extract=100 h) were measured for all three systems. Based on these results, we conclude that electrospraying process is an effective methodology for the development of bioactive agents’ nanosystems with excellent physicochemical properties and increased bioavailability; a crucial factor for the formation of high added-value products such as cosmetics.