Co-encapsulation of antioxidants into niosomal carriers: Gastrointestinal release studies for nutraceutical applications

Recently niosomes have been used as nutraceutical vehicles of functional components, useful in the prevention of many diseases caused by oxidative stress, with the aim to control their delivery into the body and to increase the nutritional quality of food dairy products with which these products can be enriched. We decided to develop novel niosomal formulations containing nutritional supplements such as gallic acid, ascorbic acid, curcumin and quercetin as single agents and in combination, to evaluate the effect of the active molecules co-encapsulation on the physico-chemical properties of the carriers, on their antioxidant properties and capability of releasing the encapsulated materials. Results suggest that the co-encapsulations of gallic acid/curcumin and ascorbic acid/quercetin mix influence their physico-chemical properties and their entrapment efficiencies respect to the formulations containing the single antioxidant; also the antioxidants releases appeared to improve and their combinations resulted in a promoted ability of reducing free radicals, due to a synergic antioxidant action.