Dados do Trabalho

Título

Development of a new ingredient based on curcumin by antisolvent precipitation method

Introdução

Curcumin (CU) is a natural pigment derived from Curcuma longa, known for its antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anticancer properties. However, its low solubility and bioavailability, particularly at high doses, limit its efficacy. This study aimed to enhance curcumin's physicochemical and antioxidant characteristics.

Material e Métodos

This study aimed to enhance curcumin's physicochemical and antioxidant characteristics. Modified curcumin (MC) was produced using the antisolvent precipitation method and characterized alongside CU for color, morphology (SEM), solubility in water, water activity, antioxidant activity (ABTS and DPPH assays), crystalline structure (XRD), and chemical composition (FTIR and Raman spectroscopy).

Resultados e Discussão

The MC powder exhibited a more intense orange hue visibly compared to CU. SEM micrographs revealed MC with dendritic needles, smaller crystal sizes, and more uniform crystals compared to CU. Antisolvent precipitation significantly reduced water activity from 0.95 ± 0.01a in CU to 0.55 ± 0.01b in MC, while water solubility increased from 76.11 ± 6.26a in CU to 97.35 ± 8.13b in MC (0.0008 g/mL). Both CU and MC powders demonstrated high antioxidant activity, with a notable increase observed in MC post-precipitation: CU displayed 259.06 ± 6.72a (ABTS) and 164.11 ± 0.54a (DPPH), while MC exhibited 308.15 ± 2.03b (ABTS) and 218.86 ± 2.12b (DPPH), equivalent to µg/mL of ascorbic acid.

Conclusão

X-ray diffractograms confirmed CU as native curcumin (form 1), whereas MC exhibited peaks indicative of the coexistence of two polymorphs (forms 2 and 3). Furthermore, curcumin modification did not affect its chemical composition. These findings demonstrate that MC possesses enhanced solubility, potentially improving absorption in the human body, and that antisolvent precipitation enhances its antioxidant activity. This suggests the potential application of MC as a natural additive in the production of functional foods or active food packaging.