Stable colloidal dispersions of fullerene C60, curcumin and C60-curcumin in water as potential antioxidants

Abstract

Despite many advantages, the practical application of fullerene C60 and curcumin (CUR) has been limited by their hydrophobic nature, deficient solubility in aqueous media and, therefore, poor bioavailability. In this study, aqueous nanoformulations containing C60 and CUR in the absence and presence of three solubility enhancers, β-cyclodextrin (CD), Tween 80 (T80) and polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP), were prepared and subjected to the antioxidant activity assessment. The content of C60 and CUR, stability, size and morphology of nanoparticles were determined using UV–vis, DLS and SEM techniques. Contrary to better solubility of pure C60 than the corresponding C60-CUR system, the solubilization of CUR in hybrid suspensions was improved compared to corresponding pure CUR suspensions, with the exception of the C60-CUR-PVP formulation. The DLS results revealed nearly monodisperse nature of CUR-T80 nanoformulation, while other ones ranged from widely dispersed to polydispersed. Depending on the type of solubilizer, similarity was observed in the particle size distributions of T80- and PVP-coated nanoformulations as well as water and CD nanoformulations. The presence of T80 differently and significantly reduces the particle size in all three nanoformulations, while PVP slightly reduces CUR-based nanoparticles but increases the size of C60 nanoparticles. Zeta potential values, ranging from − 9 mV to − 34 mV, show variation in the starting stability of nanoparticles, from unstable or relatively stable three PVP formulations and C60-T80 to highly stable CUR-T80 and C60-water. Compared to water nanoformulations as a control, SEM images of dispersant-coated nanoparticles lost the visible morphology of active components, showing variation in their morphology depending on the type of dispersant and active component used. Nanoformulations containing CUR in PVP and T80 expressed a very good antioxidant potential in DPPH radical scavenging assay, much stronger than ascorbic acid. At the same time, a moderate to high antioxidant activity in β-carotene bleaching assay was reached in PVP and T80 nanoformulations containing C60, CUR, and their noncovalent hybrid, as well. Our studies have shown that T80 and PVP colloidal systems containing C60-CUR hybrid, but also their individual components, can be used as stable antioxidant nanoformulations with potential application in the field of food and pharmacology.