Encapsulation of safflower oil in nanostructured lipid carriers for food application.

Safflower oil (SO) is mainly rich in linoleic acid (ω-6), oleic acid (ω-9), and other bioactives with potential antioxidant, antidiabetic, thermogenic, anti-inflammatory, cardioprotective and anticancer activities. The reduced aqueous solubility and high susceptibility to oxidative degradation are undesirable for food applications and can be overcome by incorporation in lipid nanoparticles. Thus, the main goal was to develop and characterize SO-loaded nanostructured lipid carriers (NLC-SO) and to evaluate their potential for protection of the antioxidant activity of the bioactive. NLC-SO showed average size of 222 ± 2.0 nm, zeta potential of  43 ± 3.5 mV and the encapsulation efficiency was 49.0 ± 2.8%, combined with high thermal compatibility (up to 228 °C) and physical stability for up to 60 days in aqueous dispersion. Besides, the NLC-SO showed threefold reduction in the DPPH radical scavenge activity after encapsulation, indicating protection of the antioxidant components of the SO and preservation of the bioactives. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s13197-021-05078-5. © Association of Food Scientists & Technologists (India) 2021.