Jelly containing composite based on α-glucosyl stevia and polyvinylpyrrolidone: Improved dissolution property of curcumin

Solubility-permeability interplay of a supersaturated lutein delivery system constructed by glycosylated stevioside and hydroxypropyl-methylcellulose

This study investigated the solubilizing capacity of glycosylated stevioside/hydroxypropyl-methylcellulose (stevia-G-HPMC) complexes with varying mass ratios on lutein. The impact on the steady-state flux and permeability coefficient of intracellular lutein was also explored through the construction of a Caco-2 cellular transport model. The results indicated that the equilibrium solubility of lutein linearly increased with an increase in stevia-G amount. The stability constants of the ternary system surpassed those of the binary system. Molecular dynamics simulation revealed a tight and stable structure in lutein supersaturated complexes. Meanwhile, lutein-stevia-G-HPMC complexes demonstrated superior cumulative penetrations, with the peak Papp (AP → BL) value being (3.24 ± 0.89) × 10-5 cm·s-1. There was a slight decrease in Papp (BL → AP), which improved the forward transport of lutein. Highly soluble lutein in aqueous environments saturated the extracellular transport proteins on the AP side of cell membranes, thereby maintaining the high permeability transport. Notably, the permeability trend of lutein in Caco-2 cells negatively correlated with the equilibrium solubility and matched the single exponential growth model. When the mass ratio of lutein, stevia-G and HPMC was 1:21:5, the solubility-permeability trade-off of lutein was effectively maintained.

Stevia (Stevia rebaudiana) as a common sugar substitute and its application in food matrices: an updated review

Stevia (Stevia rebaudiana) has been employee for developing food products as a substitute for sucrose, low caloric, and natural sweetener. Different studies have evaluated the effect of this ingredient on the physicochemical, nutritional and technological properties of products; their application in dairy products affects some sensory characteristics such as taste; in the case of bread, cookies, and cakes modify the properties of the dough, altering attributes of the manufactured product, including color, texture, and flavor; also the use of stevia reduces gelling and affects the optical properties of the final product; and in beverages cases, the total substitution of sugar has led to bitter and unpleasant flavor. This review presents stevia general information and its employees in dairy, bakery, beverages, and jelly products.

Photo-Phytotherapeutic Gel Composed of Copaifera reticulata, Chlorophylls, and k-Carrageenan: A New Perspective for Topical Healing

Chronic wound healing represents an impactful financial burden on healthcare systems. In this context, the use of natural products as an alternative therapy reduces costs and maintains effectiveness. Phytotherapeutic gels applied in photodynamic therapy (PDT) have been developed to act as topical healing medicines and antibiotics. The bioactive system is composed of Spirulina sp. (source of chlorophylls) and Copaifera reticulata oil microdroplets, both incorporated into a polymeric blend constituted by kappa-carrageenan (k-car) and F127 copolymer, constituting a system in which all components are bioactive agents. The flow behavior and viscoelasticity of the formulations were investigated. The photodynamic activity was accessed from studies of the inactivation of Staphylococcus aureus bacteria, the main pathogen of hospital relevance. Furthermore, in vivo studies were conducted using eighteen rabbits with dermatitis (grade III and IV) in both paws. The gels showed significant antibiotic potential in vitro, eliminating up to 100% of S. aureus colonies in the presence or absence of light. The k-car reduced 41% of the viable cells; however, its benefits were enhanced by adding chlorophyll and copaiba oil. The animals treated with the phytotherapeutic medicine showed a reduction in lesion size, with healing and re-epithelialization verified in the histological analyses. The animals submitted to PDT displayed noticeable improvement, indicating this therapy's viability for ulcerative and infected wounds. This behavior was not observed in the iodine control treatment, which worsened the animals' condition. Therefore, gel formulations were a viable alternative for future pharmaceutical applications, aiming at topical healing.

A review of transglycosylated compounds as food additives to enhance the solubility and oral absorption of hydrophobic compounds in nutraceuticals and pharmaceuticals

Transglycosylation has been used to modify the physicochemical properties of original compounds. As a result, transglycosylated compounds can form molecular aggregates in size ranges of a few nanometers in an aqueous medium when their concentrations exceed a specific level. Incorporating these hydrophobic compounds has been observed to enhance the solubility of hydrophobic compounds into aggregate structures. Thus, this review introduces four transglycosylated compounds as food additives that can enhance the solubility and oral absorption of hydrophobic compounds. Here, transglycosylated hesperidin, transglycosylated rutin, transglycosylated naringin, and transglycosylated stevia are the focus as representative substances. Significantly, we observed that amorphous formations containing hydrophobic compounds with transglycosylated compounds improved solubility and oral absorption compared to untreated hydrophobic compounds. Moreover, combining transglycosylated compounds with hydrophilic polymers or surfactants enhanced the solubilizing effects on hydrophobic compounds. Furthermore, the enhanced solubility of hydrophobic compounds improved their oral absorption. Transglycosylated compounds also influenced nanoparticle preparation of hydrophobic compounds as a dispersant. This study demonstrated the benefits of transglycosylated compounds in developing supplements and nutraceuticals of hydrophobic compounds with poor aqueous solubility.

Hybridization of glucosyl stevioside and hydroxypropyl methylcellulose to improve the solubility of lutein

In this paper, a lutein-glucosyl stevioside (stevia-G)-hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC) complex was prepared via an antisolvent precipitation combined with dynamic high pressure microfluidization method. The solubility, microstructure, crystallinity and thermodynamic properties of the freeze-dried powder were investigated, as well as the formation mechanism and the storage stability of the produced complex. When the optimal mass ratio of lutein, stevia-G, and HPMC was 1: 40: 0.5, the apparent solubility of lutein reached 2805.47 ± 24.94 μg·mL^-1, which was approximately 5600 times higher than that of lutein crystals. The lutein-stevia-G-HPMC complex formed an amorphous dispersed structure and was in a thermodynamically high energy state. The self-assembled micelle structure of stevia-G and HPMC polymer created a supersaturated system mainly by multiple hydrogen bonding, which promoted maximum lutein dissolving, delayed supersaturated crystallization process, and hindered precipitation. The present results suggested the complex formed by stevia-G and HPMC effectively promote lutein's hydrophilicity and stability.

Optimization of Microwave-Assisted Green Method for Enhanced Solubilization of Water-Soluble Curcuminoids Prepared Using Steviol Glycosides

In this study, the optimization and modeling of microwave-assisted extraction (MAE) of water-soluble curcuminoids prepared using novel steviol glycosides (SGs) was carried out using four independent process variables at varying levels-X₁: microwave power (50-200 W), X₂: stevioside concentration (50-200 mg/mL), X₃: curcumin concentration (20-200 mg/mL), and X₄: time (1-10 min)-in response surface methodology configuration. Moreover, the effects of stevioside, as the most cost-effective natural solubilizer, were also evaluated. The water solubility of curcuminoids increased from 11 to 1320 mg/L with the addition of stevioside as a natural solubilizer. Moreover, microwave heating synergistically with stevioside addition significantly (p < 0.05) increased the solubility up to 5400 mg/L. Based on the results, the optimum conditions providing the maximum solubilization of 16,700 mg/L were 189 W microwave power, 195 g/L stevioside concentration, 183 g/L curcuminoid concentration, and 9 min of incubation time. Moreover, MAE of curcuminoids using SGs might render a significant advantage for its wide-scale application to solubilizing the multitude of insoluble functional flavonoids in fruits, plants, and food materials.

Structural changes in pH-responsive gelatin/hydroxypropyl methylcellulose phthalate blends aimed at drug-release systems

The present study aimed to investigate the thermal- and pH-dependent gelation behavior of gelatin/HPMCP blends using ultraviolet (UV) spectrophotometry, viscoelasticity, and dynamic light scattering (DLS). We found that the release of lisinopril from gelatin/HPMCP gels can be inhibited at low pH. UV spectrophotometric analysis showed that pH had a significant effect on the transparency of aqueous HPMCP systems and gelatin/HPMCP gels. The viscoelastic patterns of gelatin/HPMCP at pH 4.6 considerably differed from those of gelatin/HPMCP at pH 5.2 and 6.0. DLS measurements showed that HPMCP molecules in low concentrations underwent strong aggregation below pH 4.8. Such HPMCP aggregation induces a physical barrier in the matrix structures of the gelatin/HPMCP gels, which inhibits the drug release at pH 1.2. This hydrogel delivery system using polymer blends of gelatin/HPMCP can be used in oral gel formulations with pH-responsive properties.

Solubility and Permeability Improvement of Quercetin by an Interaction Between α-Glucosyl Stevia Nanoaggregates and Hydrophilic Polymer

The effect of composite formation between α-glucosyl stevia (Stevia-G) and hydrophilic polymers on solubility and permeability enhancement of quercetin hydrate (QUE) was evaluated. Polyvinylpyrrolidone K-30 (PVP), hydroxypropyl methylcellulose 2910-E (HPMC), and hydroxypropyl cellulose SSL (HPC) were selected as candidate hydrophilic polymers. Fluorescence studies with pyrene and curcumin suggested composite formation occurs between Stevia-G aggregate and polymers. Furthermore, the strength of interaction between Stevia-G aggregate and polymers was as follows: PVP > HPMC > HPC. Evaporated particles (EVPs) of QUE with Stevia-G and polymers showed synergic QUE solubility enhancement. Solubility of QUE from the EVPs was enhanced in the following order: Stevia-G/PVP > Stevia-G/HPMC > Stevia-G/HPC, in accordance with the degree of interaction. Enhanced membrane permeability of QUE from the EVPs of Stevia-G/PVP was confirmed using Caco-2 cells. The amount of QUE that permeated Caco-2 cells from the EVPs of Stevia-G/PVP was 13.7-, 4.7-, and 2.1-fold higher than that of the untreated QUE powder, EVPs of Stevia-G, and EVPs of PVP, respectively. These results indicated that the composite formed by Stevia-G and PVP can dramatically enhance the solubility and membrane permeability of QUE.