Encapsulation of Mentha piperita essential oils in chitosan–cinnamic acid nanogel with enhanced antimicrobial activity against Aspergillus flavus

• CS–Ci nanogel; a promising encapsulating material for M. piperita essential oils.
• Enhanced antifungal activity of CS–Ci nanogel-encapsulated essential oils.
• Nanogel-encapsulation led to higher antifungal activity under non-sealed condition.

Aspergillus flavus is a human pathogen, allergen and mycotoxin producer. Plant oils such as peppermint oils are known to possess considerable antifungal properties are increasingly considered as natural agents for food preservation and as alternatives for toxic synthetic fungicides. This study was set to investigate the encapsulation of Mentha piperita essential oils in chitosan–cinnamic acid nanogel in order to enhance antimicrobial activity and stability of the oils against A. flavus. The results obtained showed that the extract possessed remarkable antifungal properties against A. flavus and that due to the volatility and instability of the oils against environmental factors, its encapsulation considerably improved its performance. The minimum inhibitory concentration of free and encapsulated M. piperita essential oils against A. flavus under sealed condition were at 2100 and 500 ppm, respectively. Moreover, the encapsulated oils performed better (800 ppm), when tested under non-sealed condition while the free oils failed to caused complete inhibition within the concentration range tested (up to 3000 ppm). These findings revealed the promising role of CS–Ci nanogel as a carrier for essential oils in order to enhance their antimicrobial properties.

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