Abstract
Chitosan is a cationic natural polysaccharide, which has emerged as an increasingly interesting biomaterialover the past few years. It constitutes a novel perspective in drug delivery systems and nanocarriers’ formulations due to its beneficial properties, including biocompatibility, biodegradability and low toxicity. The potentiality of chemical or enzymatic modifications of the biopolymer, as well as its complementary use with other polymers, further attract the scientific community, offering improved and combined properties in the final materials. As a result, chitosan has been extensively used as a matrix for the encapsulation of several valuable compounds. In this review article, the advantageous character of chitosan as a matrix for nanosystemsis presented, focusing on the encapsulation of natural products. A five-year literature review is attempted covering the use of chitosan and modified chitosan as matrices and coatings for the encapsulation of natural extracts, essential oils or pure naturally occurring bioactive compounds are discussed.
Highlights
Natural products represent a large family of diverse chemical entities produced naturally by any organism with a wide variety of biological activities and distinctive pharmacological effects
The results showed that the water solubFiluitrythaenrdmaonrteio, xPiadnadntapertoaple.r[t6ie9s] omf othdeifmieoddcifiheitdosparnodoufctthdreeceredaisffee,rwenhtenMtWhesMbWy uosfincogrrpe-scpoounmdainrigc naactiidvefocrhietnohsaanncinincgretahseeisr
In this review focus is given to the last five years, which have been very productive regarding the preparation of chitosan nanoparticles loaded with pure bioactive naturally occurring compounds, essential oils (EOs) or extracts
Summary
Natural products represent a large family of diverse chemical entities produced naturally by any organism with a wide variety of biological activities and distinctive pharmacological effects. The antimicrobial [77,78], antioxidant [79] and lipid-lowering activities of chitosan, are enhanced in the nanoparticulate form This could be attributed to the high surface to volume ratio, reinforcing the properties of the encapsulated compounds or natural products. Su et al [84] synthesized the N-benzaldehyde chitosan which was further modified to form the non-toxic, water soluble 6-deoxy-6-arginine- modified chitosan that exhibits high antPihbaarmctaeceruitaiclsa2c0t2i0v, 1it2y, .x. The complementary use of chitosan with other polymers, such as alginate, hyaluronan, poly (lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA), oligosaccharides like CDs or macromolecules as corn zein and quinoa proteins is very promising.The above-mentionedcombinations can lead to advanced properties, tailored according to the end-use application. Over the past five years, several research teams have presented the synthesis of chitosan micro- or nano-particles loaded with a plethora of extracts, such as Centella asiatica [122], Cinnamomum cassia [123], Plinia cauliflora (jabuticaba) fruit peel [124], Origanum vulgare L [125], Mentha longifolia [126], Physalis alkekengi-L [127], Eugenia dysenterica [128] or grape and apple pomace phenolic extract [129], aiming at their enhanced characteristics in order to be applied in various fields
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
