Fabrication and characterization of curcumin-loaded nanoparticles using licorice protein isolate from Radix Glycyrrhizae

Huiqin Wang; Binbin Song; Jianwu Zhou; Guanzhen Gao; Yanan Ding; Xiangyu Meng; Lijing Ke; Wei Ding; Suyun Zhang; Tianbao Chen; Pingfan Rao

doi:10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2023.128235

Fabrication and characterization of curcumin-loaded nanoparticles using licorice protein isolate from Radix Glycyrrhizae

Int J Biol Macromol. 2024 Jan:255:128235. doi: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2023.128235. Epub 2023 Nov 21.

Authors

Huiqin Wang¹, Binbin Song², Jianwu Zhou¹, Guanzhen Gao³, Yanan Ding², Xiangyu Meng², Lijing Ke⁴, Wei Ding², Suyun Zhang², Tianbao Chen⁵, Pingfan Rao¹

Affiliations

¹ Food Nutrition Science Centre, School of Food Science and Biotechnology, Zhejiang Gongshang University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China; College of Food and Bioengineering, Fujian Polytechnic Normal University, Fuqing, Fujian, China.
² Food Nutrition Science Centre, School of Food Science and Biotechnology, Zhejiang Gongshang University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China.
³ Food Nutrition Science Centre, School of Food Science and Biotechnology, Zhejiang Gongshang University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China; College of Food and Bioengineering, Fujian Polytechnic Normal University, Fuqing, Fujian, China. Electronic address: gaoguanzhen@zjgsu.edu.cn.
⁴ Food Nutrition Science Centre, School of Food Science and Biotechnology, Zhejiang Gongshang University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China; School of Food Science and Nutrition, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, UK.
⁵ School of Pharmacy, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast BT9 7BL, United Kingdom.

PMID: 37981268
DOI: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2023.128235

Abstract

Licorice was widely used in food and herbal medicine. In its extract industry, a substantial amount of licorice protein was produced and discarded as waste. Herein, we extracted Licorice Protein Isolate (LPI) and explored its potential as a curcumin nanocarrier. Using a pH-driven method, we fabricated LPI-curcumin nanoparticles with diameters ranging from 129.30 ± 3.21 nm to 75.03 ± 1.19 nm, depending on the LPI/curcumin molar ratio. The formation of LPI-curcumin nanoparticles was primarily driven by hydrophobic interactions, with curcumin entrapped in LPI being in an amorphous form. These nanoparticles significantly enhanced curcumin properties in terms of solubility, photochemical stability, and stability under varying pH, storage, and physiological conditions. Moreover, the loaded curcumin exhibited a 2.58-fold increase in cellular antioxidant activity on RAW 264.7 cells and a 1.86-fold increase in antitumor activity against HepG2 cells compared to its free form. These findings suggested that LPI could potentially serve as a promising novel delivery material.

Keywords: Curcumin; Licorice protein isolate; Nanoparticles.

MeSH terms

Antioxidants / chemistry
Antioxidants / pharmacology
Curcumin* / chemistry
Curcumin* / pharmacology
Drug Carriers / chemistry
Glycyrrhiza*
Nanoparticles* / chemistry
Particle Size
Solubility

Substances

Curcumin
Antioxidants
Drug Carriers