Electrosprayed B-complex vitamins/zein microparticles for drug sustained release and antioxidant applications

B-complex vitamins are important compounds for the human body, namely for brain and cell function and preventing infections and diseases. However, the instability associated with these vitamins is a critical problem. Their encapsulation into delivery systems that are able to protect them against undesirable conditions can be one solution for this problem. The present study focuses on the encapsulation of B-complex vitamins at different concentrations (1, 5 and 10% w/w) by an electrohydrodynamic technique. The synergistic effect of the B-vitamins in enhancing the antioxidant activity of microstructures is investigated. Zein, a prolamine protein found in corn, was the chosen wall material. The matrices were analyzed in terms of surface morphology, encapsulation efficiency, antioxidant activity and release of the B-vitamins from the zein microstructures. Spherical microbeads were produced with sizes between 0.32 and 0.38 mu m, and with high efficiency of encapsulation. Vitamin release profiles were obtained and the results suggested similar release profiles (in the range 10-40 h) for vitamins B3, B6, B3 plus B6, and B3, B6 plus B9. The Weibull model was used to adjust the experimental release profiles. Regarding the assessed antioxidant activity, it was possible to visualize an activity enhancement of the vitamins B3, B9 and B6 plus B9. Overall, the proposed encapsulation microsystems are a suitable alternative for the encapsulation of sensitive bioactive ingredients, such as vitamins, against external conditions, maintaining the indispensable stability essential for food, nutraceutical and pharmaceutical products.(c) 2023 Society of Chemical Industry.