Improving stability of antioxidant compounds from Plinia cauliflora (jabuticaba) fruit peel extract by encapsulation in chitosan microparticles

The present work aimed to microencapsulate the phenolic extract of jabuticaba peel and to evaluate the stabilization of antioxidant compounds provided by the resulting microparticles. The microparticles were obtained by the spray-drying method using the chitosan polymer, varying amounts of polymer and extract along with different drying conditions. The best system presented highly efficient encapsulation of total polyphenols (∼79%), significant antioxidant activity (387.08 ± 4.02 and 830.36 ± 27.39 mM TEAC for DPPH and ABTS respectively, p < 0.05), spherical morphology, with a smooth surface and mean diameter of ∼9 μm. For the evaluation of stability, these microparticles were subjected to three temperature conditions, and the total content of polyphenols was determined. In general, after 60 days it was verified that the microparticles were better than the extract in maintaining the total polyphenols at the three temperatures studied (p < 0.05). Hence, our MPs can be stored at both refrigerated temperature and room temperature to preserve the total polyphenol content for 60 days (97 ± 9% and 83 ± 4%, respectively) and at a stress temperature for 30 days (74 ± 19%). The present study, therefore, showed the development of stable chitosan microparticles encapsulating jabuticaba peel extract successfully produced by spray drying. These microparticles were capable of protecting the total polyphenols contained in the extract, promoting the stability of these compounds during storage, which enhables their application in food or cosmetic products.