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ARS Home » Midwest Area » Peoria, Illinois » National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research » Plant Polymer Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #356446
Research Project: Conversion of Polysaccharides and Other Bio-based Materials to High-Value, Commercial Products

Location: Plant Polymer Research

Title: Pequi oil microencapsulation by complex coacervation using gelatin-cashew gum

Author
item ALVES DO NASCIMENTO - Universidade Estadual Do Ceara
item CARVALHO DA SILVA, LUANA - Universidade Federal Do Ceara (UFC)
item MENDES, LUANA - Embrapa
item FURTADO, ROSELAYNE - Embrapa
item CORREIA DA COSTA, JOSE - Embrapa
item Biswas, Atanu
item Cheng, Huai
item ALVES, CARLUCIO - Universidade Estadual Do Ceara

Submitted to: International Journal of Food Sciences and Nutrition
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 4/1/2019
Publication Date: 1/18/2020
Citation: Alves Do Nascimento, Carvalho Da Silva, L., Mendes, L.G., Furtado, R.F., Correia Da Costa, J.M., Biswas, A., Cheng, H.N., Alves, C.R. 2020. Pequi oil microencapsulation by complex coacervation using gelatin-cashew gum . International Journal of Food Sciences and Nutrition. 9:SI97-SI109. https://doi.org/10.7455/ijfs/9.SI.2020.a8.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.7455/ijfs/9.SI.2020.a8

Interpretive Summary: Pequi oil has medicinal and cosmetic uses. In this study, we have successfully developed cashew gum/gelatin complex. It is clear that cashew gum has great potential as an encapsulation matrix, representing an alternative to expensive gum Arabic. Since cashew gum is a by-product of the cashew industry and has little commercial value, the possibility of using cashew gum for encapsulation should be a welcome development for the industry. The science and processes developed during this research will be useful for making other bio-oil complexes and new applications.

Technical Abstract: Complex coacervation can serve as an encapsulation method for preserving chemical and physicochemical properties of bioactive molecules, especially those that are hydrophobic or sensitive to high temperatures. The objective of this work was to produce and characterize pequi oil microparticles using cashew gum/gelatin matrix (CG/GE) through complex coacervation. Gum arabic (GA) was also studied in comparison with CG. The coacervation process was performed without pequi oil to determine the ideal proportions of the matrix components, followed by the embedding of the oil in the microparticles for evaluation. Satisfactory microparticles were produced at pH 4.5 in the weight ratios of CG/GE = 2:1 and GA/GE = 1:3. Pequi oil release was greater in acidic pH, especially at pH 2 for the CG/GE matrix. The encapsulation efficiency for GC/GE and GA/GE was 72.53% (±4.80) and 82.77% (±6.09), respectively. From the results obtained, the CG/GE combination seems very promising as an encapsulation matrix, especially for applications involving pH values higher than 3.