Encapsulation Properties of Mentha piperita Leaf Extracts Prepared Using an Ultrasound-Assisted Double Emulsion Method

• Published in: Foods 2023-04, Vol.12 (9), p.1838
• Main Authors: Sobti, Bhawna, Kamal-Eldin, Afaf, Rasul, Sanaa, Alnuaimi, Mariam Saeed Khalfan, Alnuaimi, Khulood Jaber Jasim, Alhassani, Alia Ali Khsaif, Almheiri, Mariam M A, Nazir, Akmal
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Amplitudes; Antioxidants; Bioactive compounds; Biological activity; Double emulsions; Droplets; Emulsions; Encapsulation; Energy consumption; Ethanol; Food industry; Food science; Hydrophobicity; Leaves; Mentha piperita; Optimization; Peas; peppermint extract; Pharmaceutical industry; Phenolic compounds; phenolic content; Phenols; Plant extracts; plant proteins; Proteins; Response surface methodology; Rheological properties; Rheology; Solvents; ultrasonic extraction; Ultrasonic imaging; Ultrasonic testing; Ultrasound; Whey protein
• ISSN: 2304-8158; 2304-8158
• DOI: 10.3390/foods12091838

Double emulsions (W /O/W ) have long been used in the food and pharmaceutical industries to encapsulate hydrophobic and hydrophilic drugs and bioactive compounds. This study investigated the effect of different types of emulsifiers (plant- vs. animal-based proteins) on the encapsulation properties of leaf extract (MLE) prepared using the double emulsion method. Using response surface methodology, the effect of ultrasound-assisted extraction conditions (amplitude 20-50%; time 10-30 min; ethanol concentration 70-90%) on the total phenolic content (TPC) and antioxidant activity (percent inhibition) of the MLE was studied. MLE under optimized conditions (ethanol concentration 76%; amplitude 39%; time 30 min) had a TPC of 62.83 mg GA equivalents/g and an antioxidant activity of 23.49%. The optimized MLE was encapsulated using soy, pea, and whey protein isolates in two emulsifying conditions: 4065× /min and 4065× /30 s. The droplet size, optical images, rheology, and encapsulation efficiency (EE%) of the different encapsulated MLEs were compared. The W /O/W produced at 4065× /min exhibited a smaller droplet size and higher EE% and viscosity than that prepared at 4065× /30 s. The higher EE% of soy and pea protein isolates indicated their potential as an effective alternative for bioactive compound encapsulation.