Production and characterization of alginate-starch-chitosan microparticles containing stigmasterol through the external ionic gelation technique

Abstract

Stigmasterol -a plant sterol with several pharmacological activities -is susceptible to oxidation when exposed to air, a process enhanced by heat and humidity. In this context, microencapsulation is a way of preventing oxidation, allowing stigmasterol to be incorporated into various pharmaceutical forms while increasing its absorption. Microparticles were obtained using a blend of polymers of sodium alginate, starch and chitosan as the coating material through a one-stage process using the external gelation technique. Resultant microparticles were spherical, averaging 1.4 mm in size. Encapsulation efficiency was 90.42% and method yield 94.87%. The amount of stigmasterol in the oil recovered from microparticles was 9.97 mg/g. This technique proved feasible for the microencapsulation of stigmasterol.Uniterms: Stigmasterol/ microencapsulation. Microencapsulation. Sodium alginate/drugs coating. Chitosan/drugs coating. Starch/drugs coating. Natural polymers/drugs coating.O estigmasterol, um fitoesterol com diversas atividades farmacológicas, é suscetível à oxidação quando exposto ao ar, calor e umidade. Neste contexto, a microencapsulação é uma forma de proteção contra oxidação, permitindo a incorporação do estigmasterol em diversas formas farmacêuticas e aumentar sua absorção. As micropartículas foram obtidas por gelificação iônica externa, em uma etapa, utilizando como revestimento polímeros naturais de alginato de sódio, amido de milho e quitosana. As micropartículas apresentaram formato esférico com tamanho aproximado de 1,4 mm. O rendimento foi de 94,87% e a eficiência média de encapsulação de 90,42%. A quantidade de estigmasterol no óleo recuperado das micropartículas foi de 9,97 mg/g. O método mostrou-se viável para a microencapsulação do estigmasterol.Unitermos: Estigmasterol/microencapsulação. Microencapsulamento. Alginato de sódio/revestimento de fámacos. Quitosana/revestimento de fámacos. Amido/revestimento de fámacos. Polímeros naturais/ revestimento de fámacos.

Development and characterization of controlled released polyphenol rich micro‐encapsulate of Murraya koenigii bark extract

“…Higher moisture in hydrogel beads was more susceptible to degradation as compared to lyophilized beads (Chen, Li, Li, McClements, & Xiao, 2017). As per previous literature, lyophilized beads exhibited different size, mechanical structure, and low surface area/volume ratios affecting the stability of encapsulate and slow release of polyphenols from the surface (Azevedo et al, 2014; Fujiwara et al, 2013). Variations in morphology are anticipated to modify the encapsulation, which leads to change in the surface area allowing lesser degradation of the encapsulated compounds.…”

Seaweed based sustainable films and composites for food and pharmaceutical applications: A review

“…For drug delivery system there are wide varieties of methods available depending on types of polymeric matrix and encapsulated drug. Alginate-starch-chitosan microparticles containing stigmasterol solubilised in canola oil as a drug delivery vehicle were effectively produced by one stage external ionic gelation process [50]. Another popular method of encapsulation is spray drying.…”

Temperature‐dependent mucosal permeation kinetics of stigmasterol microspheres: In vivo mice model antioral candidiasis study

“…In brief 50 mg of prepared and powdered microsphere were dispersed in 10 ml of pH 6.8 buffer. Then 1 ml from that was transferred to 7 ml of chloroform and 2 ml of Liebarman–Buchard reagent and stigmasterol content was estimated from the standard curve (Fujiwara et al, ). The theoretical drug content, % drug loading and % of drug entrapment were determined by the following formula (Dozie‐Nwachukwu et al, ; Gaba, Singh, Gaba, & Gupta, ). …”

“…Then 50 mg of microsphere formulations were spread over the sheep cheek mucus membrane and were immersed slightly in 25 ml of receptor medium with continuous stirring at 37 ± 1°C. An aliquot of 1.0 ml were withdrawn at specific time intervals up to 6 hr, transferred to 7 ml of chloroform and 2 ml of Liebarman–Buchard reagent and the stigmasterol content was estimated from the standard curve prepared at 645 nm wavelength (Fujiwara et al, ) using UV visible spectrophotometer [JASCO V‐630 (Jasco, Japan)] coupled with spectra manager software.…”