Nanotechnology is a rapidly expanding technology with a lot of potential in a greatly amount of areas including pharmaceutical and food industries. One of the applications is the encapsulation of small particles within a wall material which are called nanovehicles.
Liposomes are an example of this nanovehicles. This nanoscopic structures consist of one or multiple concentric phospholipidic bilayers membranes that encase aqueous compartments in which bioactive compounds could be protected during digestion such as antioxidant hydrolysates.
In previous works, the α-lactoalbumin hydrolysis with alcalase has been found to generate hydrolysates with antioxidant properties. The objective of this work was to evaluate the viability of the antioxidant hydrolysates incorporation into liposomes and study their distribution in vivo.
Liposomes were elaborated using hand shaken method with phosphatidilcolina and colesterol in clorophorm-methanol. To minimize their size, liposomes were extruded with policarbonate filters. Liposomes caracterization was done by determination of temperature and transition enthalpy through differential scanning calorimetry. Liposomes formation and stability were analized by droplet size profile using a Coulter Counter Multisizer particle size analizer. The content of antioxidant hydrolysates in the liposomes was determined by spectrophotometry. In order to evaluate the in vivo bioavailability and biodistribution, the liposome was marked with 99mTc (gamma emission radionucleid) which was coupled to the lipic bilayer through a bifuntional agent (HYNIC, hidrazinonicotinamide).
Liposomes presented stability and retention in a 60 % of the hydrolyzed fractions.
To conclude, liposomes were effective to the incorporation of antioxidant hydrolysetes and their future incorporation in foods.