Alginate based encapsulation as a tool for the protection of bioactive compounds from aromatic herbs

Abstract

The objective of this study was to evaluate the total phenolic compound content (TPC), antioxidant capacity by the • DPPH, ABTS • + and FRAP methods in aqueous (AqE), hydroethanolic (HE), and ethanolic (EOH) extracts of six species of aromatic herbs, Basil (Ocimum basilicum), Parsley (Petroselinum crispum), Rosemary (Rosmarinus of- ficinalis), Thyme (Thymus vulgaris), Chervil (Anthriscus cerefolium) and Chive ( Allium fistulosum ), with subsequent microencapsulation, using the dripping technique, only for the ones who had better TPC contents. The TPC values presented a variation between (142.81 ± 7.06 mg GAE/g) for the HE of rosemary and (30.52 ± 0.95 mg GAE/g) for the HE of chervil. In this study, the lowest antioxidant activity obtained by the • DPPH was for the EOH of parsley, and the highest antioxidant activity was for the HE of rosemary. The best results found by the ABTS • + was for the HE of rosemary 40.44 ± 0.19 (μmol of Trolox/g), and the lowest values were for the AqE of basil 9.13 ± 0.97 (μmol of Trolox/g), the results obtained in this assay, found higher ferric reducing power for AqE of rosemary 46.78 ± 0.25 (μmol FeSO4/g) and lower value for EOH of chervil 8.99 ± 0.13 (μmol FeSO4/g). The use of scanning electron microscopy revealed the presence of microparticles with the desired shape, sizes rang- ing from 920.08 ± 11.63 to 754.28 ± 16.62 μm, and encapsulation efficiency, from 68.24 ± 0.15 to 93.39 ± 0.01%. These results indicate that the application of microencapsulated plant extracts has potential for use in the food industry. They present good results for phenolic compounds and antioxidant capacity levels, presenting a good microencapsulation efficiency.