Zanotti Alessandra, Baldino Lucia, Reverchon Ernesto, Cardea Stefano
Department of Industrial Engineering, University of Salerno, Via Giovanni Paolo II, 132, 84084 Fisciano, Italy.
Gels. 2025 May 27;11(6):393. doi: 10.3390/gels11060393.
Bioactive compounds of natural origin are central to the development of nutraceutical formulations. To improve their stability and to target their delivery to the intestinal or colonic tract, alginate/k-carrageenan spherical gels have been produced at different volumetric ratios (100/0, 70/30, 50/50, 30/70, and 0/100 /), by means of solution dripping and external gelation. Different drying methods were compared, and only through supercritical technologies was it possible to achieve interpenetrated networks that feature nanometric pore size distribution. Hybrid aerogels inherited the most relevant characteristics of alginate and k-carrageenan: they showed remarkable water uptake capacity (e.g., 50.60 g/g), and stability in aqueous media over large timespans. Naringin release tests in simulated intestinal and colonic fluids proved that it is possible to target drug delivery by choosing intermediate alginate/k-carrageenan ratios. Overall, by means of supercritical gel drying, it is possible to generate advanced biopolymeric aerogels, yielding fully natural interpenetrated networks that valorize the most compelling properties of each species involved.
天然来源的生物活性化合物是营养制剂开发的核心。为了提高其稳定性并将其靶向递送至肠道或结肠,通过溶液滴注和外部凝胶化,以不同的体积比(100/0、70/30、50/50、30/70和0/100)制备了海藻酸盐/κ-卡拉胶球形凝胶。比较了不同的干燥方法,只有通过超临界技术才能实现具有纳米孔径分布特征的互穿网络。混合气凝胶继承了海藻酸盐和κ-卡拉胶的最相关特性:它们表现出显著的吸水能力(例如50.60 g/g),并在长时间内保持在水性介质中的稳定性。在模拟肠液和结肠液中的柚皮苷释放试验证明,通过选择中间的海藻酸盐/κ-卡拉胶比例,可以实现药物靶向递送。总体而言,通过超临界凝胶干燥,可以生成先进的生物聚合物气凝胶,产生完全天然的互穿网络,从而充分发挥每种相关物质的最引人注目的特性。