Vol. 10, Issue 10 (2021)

Author(s):
M Kavimughil, M Maria Leena, JA Moses and C Anandharamakrishnan

Abstract:
Oleogelation is a technique of structuring of oil, in the presence of gelator molecules. The oleogels formed have got superior functional benefits especially in replacing the harmful trans fats and other conventional shortenings in bakery and meat-based products. Apart from that due to their lipophilic nature, oleogels have been recently studied as nutraceutical carriers especially for hydrophobic bioactive compounds. The bioactives are generally very sensitive towards light, heat and harmful pH conditions that there is a continuous demand for developing an effective carrier. In this study the ethylcellulose oleogels, which are a well-accepted type of oleogels, utilizing its lipophilic medium was explored as nutraceutical carrier for co-delivering curcumin and resveratrol. It was observed that the oleogel containing 11% w/w of EC promoted a targeted co-delivery of both curcumin and resveratrol (> 50%) under intestine condition. This study expands the application of EC-MCT based oleogels as bioactive carriers in nutraceutical development.