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Effect of carvacrol encapsulation in starch‐based nanofibers: Thermal resistance and antioxidant and antimicrobial properties
Author(s) -
Fonseca Laura Martins,
Radünz Marjana,
Crizel Rosane Lopes,
Camargo Taiane Mota,
Gandra Eliezer Avila,
Dias Alvaro Renato Guerra
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
journal of food processing and preservation
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.511
H-Index - 48
eISSN - 1745-4549
pISSN - 0145-8892
DOI - 10.1111/jfpp.15409
Subject(s) - carvacrol , nanofiber , antimicrobial , food science , electrospinning , chemistry , antioxidant , thymol , starch , food packaging , resistant starch , materials science , nanotechnology , organic chemistry , essential oil , polymer
Abstract The need for biodegradable and innovative nanomaterials in the food packaging industry motivates the conduction of studies on the production and characterization of new nanomaterials. The aim of this study was to evaluate the encapsulation efficiency (EE), thermal resistance, and antioxidant and antimicrobial activities of carvacrol encapsulated in potato starch nanofibers. The nanofibers possessed low EE (26%–33%) and high thermal resistance, showing residual carvacrol quantities after exposure to high temperatures. They also showed reduced but stable inhibition of DPPH oxidation compared with free carvacrol (20%, 33%, and 52% for the nanofibers with 20%, 30%, and 40% carvacrol, respectively) and OH inhibition varying from 4% to 18% for the nanofibers in general. Moderate antimicrobial activity (0.98 mg/ml) was found for all nanofibers throughout minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) values. Our findings highlight the potential of starch/carvacrol nanofibers for application in the food sector as an antimicrobial and antioxidant agent. Practical applications The nanomaterial developed in this study can be applied in the elaboration of active food packages, which can act as antioxidants and/or antimicrobial agents. The end use includes packages that undergo high temperatures in their production. In addition, the packages containing the starch/carvacrol nanofibers can preserve several types of food products.