Synthesis of chitosan nanoparticles of flavonoids extracted from black bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) seed coats to enhance the intestinal absorption and increase plasma residence time

Abstract

Beans exert hypolipidemic activity, and it has been attributed to flavonoids and saponins from seed coats, by attenuating lipogenesis and stimulating fatty acid oxidation and cholesterol biliary excretion through the differentially regulation of LXR probably mediated by AMPK phosphorylation. However, their therapeutic potential is limited by their low oral bioavailability, attributed to poor stability and intestinal absorption. Chitosan (CS) is a natural biodegradable, biocompatible and non‐toxic biopolymer extracted from the shells of crustaceans. Chitosan and its derivatives have been examined extensively for medical and pharmaceutical applications such as targeted drug delivery, drug transport, and so on. The chitosan tripolyphosphate (CS/TPP) nanoparticles have been used as an alternative to encapsulate bioactive flavonoids from black bean seed coats. The particle size measurements of the nanoparticles were measured by the Zetasizer Nano and the cytotoxicity of CS/TPP nanoparticles was evaluated by MTT assay using fibroblasts from Mus musculus (NIH/3T3 cell line). Nanoparticles size was approximately 150 nm, the encapsulation efficiency of CS/TPP nanoparticles was found to be 59.9%, and they were not cytotoxic at a concentration of 500mg/mL in fibroblast cells. CS/TPP naanoparticles are an interesting alternative to develop a delivery systems for flavonoids and natural bioactive compounds.Support or Funding InformationThis research was supported by the Research Chair Funds for Full Time Professors (2014) of Autonomous University of Baja California (UABC), program Number 3888. The authors would like to acknowledge Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología (CONACYT) in Mexico.