Preparation of phytol-loaded nanoemulsion and screening for antioxidant capacity

Abstract

The study aims at preparation of nanoemulsion and subsequently test for antioxidant capacity of a diterpenoid isoprenoid alcohol called phytol (PYT), which is already evident to have a number of important activities. For this PYT-loaded nanoemulsion was prepared by phase inversion method and both PYT-containing nanoemulsion (PNE) and PYT-free nanoemulsion (PFNE) at a concentration range 2 to 16 µM were tested for antiradical (DPPH●: 1,1-dipheny-picrylhydrazyl radical; ABTS●+: azino-bis-ethylbenzthiazoline-sulfonic acid; ●OH: hydroxyl radical scavenging; NO●: nitrite oxide radical), lipid peroxidation (LP), reduction potential (RP), and inhibition of hemolysis (HL) in rat erythrocytes activities in comparison of an α-tocopherol analogue, trolox (TRO) (positive control). In addition, an in vivo test was performed in wildtype and deficient Saccharomyces cerevisiae strains using hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) as a stressor (STR). Results suggest that PNE exhibited potential antioxidant activities than the PFNE. Increased doses of treatment groups showed increased antioxidant capacity in a dose-dependent manner. In the S. cerevisiae study, both PFNE- and PNE-treated groups exhibited decreased rates of survival with the highest doses, whichever in the presence of STR increased the survival rates of strains; suggesting an antioxidative defense capacity of PYT. In this occasion, PNE exhibited prominent antioxidative defense in the presence of STR rather than PFNE. In conclusion, PYT exhibited potential antioxidant activity but at high concentration it is toxic to the yeast cells. The production of PYT-nanoemulsions may be relevant to pharmaceutical sciences.