Fabrication of oil-in-water emulsions as shelf-stable liquid non-dairy creamers: effects of homogenization pressure, oil type, and emulsifier concentration.

BACKGROUND: The popularity of coffee, the second most consumed beverage in the world, contributes to the high demand for liquid non-dairy creamer (LNDC). In this study, palm olein emulsions (as LNDCs) were investigated as alternatives to the more common soybean oil-based LNDCs. LNDCs were prepared via different homogenization pressures (100-300 bar) using different types of oil (palm olein and soybean oil) and concentrations of DATEM emulsifier (5-20 g kg-1 ). RESULTS: Increases in homogenization pressure and emulsifier concentration were observed to have significant (P < 0.05) effects on the physicochemical properties (particle size, pH, and viscosity) of the LNDCs. Palm olein and soybean oil LNDCs prepared using 15 g kg-1 and 10 g kg-1 DATEM emulsifier, respectively, were determined to be the most stable (as observed throughout a 15-day storage period at ambient temperature of 28 ± 2 °C), with properties closest to those of a commercial LNDC. When added to black coffee, both LNDCs displayed a good whitening effect by increasing the L* value from 26.73 ± 0.16 (black coffee) to ≥40.82 ± 0.56 (black coffee + LNDCs). Sensory evaluation showed that there were no significant (P > 0.05) differences between the prepared and commercial LNDCs in terms of their color, appearance, and overall acceptability. CONCLUSION: Shelf-stable LNDCs with qualities comparable to commercial LNDC were successfully fabricated. Valuable insights into the effects of homogenization pressure, oil type, and emulsifier concentration, as well as functionality and consumer acceptance of the LNDCs when added into black coffee, were obtained. © 2020 Society of Chemical Industry.

Pickering emulsion-templated ionotropic gelation of tocotrienol microcapsules: effects of alginate and chitosan concentrations and gelation process parameters.

BACKGROUND: Throughout the past decade, Pickering emulsion has been increasingly utilized for the encapsulation of bioactive compounds due to its high stability and biocompatibility. In the present work, palm tocotrienols were initially encapsulated in a calcium carbonate Pickering emulsion, which was then subjected to alginate gelation and subsequent chitosan coating. The effects of wall material (alginate and chitosan) concentrations, gelation pH and time, and chitosan coating time on the encapsulation efficiency of palm tocotrienols were explored. RESULTS: Our findings revealed that uncoated alginate microcapsules ruptured upon drying and exhibited low encapsulation efficiency (13.81 ± 2.76%). However, the addition of chitosan successfully provided a more complex and rigid external wall structure to enhance the stability of the microcapsules. By prolonging the crosslinking time from 5 to 30 min and increasing the chitosan concentration from 0.1% to 0.5%, the oil encapsulation efficiency was increased by 28%. Under the right gelation pH (pH 4), the extension of gelation time from 1 to 12 h resulted in an increase in alginate-Ca2+ crosslinkings, thus strengthening the microcapsules. CONCLUSION: With the optimum formulation and process parameters, a high encapsulation efficiency (81.49 ± 1.75%) with an elevated oil loading efficiency (63.58 ± 2.96%) were achieved. The final product is biocompatible and can potentially be used for the delivery of palm tocotrienols. © 2021 Society of Chemical Industry.

Improving Vesicular Integrity and Antioxidant Activity of Novel Mixed Soy Lecithin-Based Liposomes Containing Squalene and Their Stability against UV Light.

In order to improve the membrane lipophilicity and the affinity towards the environment of lipid bilayers, squalene (SQ) could be conjugated to phospholipids in the formation of liposomes. The effect of membrane composition and concentrations on the degradation of liposomes prepared via the extrusion method was investigated. Liposomes were prepared using a mixture of SQ, cholesterol (CH) and Tween80 (TW80). Based on the optimal conditions, liposome batches were prepared in the absence and presence of SQ. Their physicochemical and stability behavior were evaluated as a function of liposome constituent. From the optimization study, the liposomal formulation containing 5% (w/w) mixed soy lecithin (ML), 0.5% (w/w) SQ, 0.3% (w/w) CH and 0.75% (w/w) TW80 had optimal physicochemical properties and displayed a unilamellar structure. Liposome prepared using the optimal formulation had a low particle size (158.31 ± 2.96 nm) and acceptable %increase in the particle size (15.09% ± 3.76%) and %trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity (%TEAC) loss (35.69% ± 0.72%) against UV light treatment (280-320 nm) for 6 h. The interesting outcome of this research was the association of naturally occurring substance SQ for size reduction without the extra input of energy or mechanical procedures, and improvement of vesicle stability and antioxidant activity of ML-based liposome. This study also demonstrated that the presence of SQ in the membrane might increase the acyl chain dynamics and decrease the viscosity of the dispersion, thereby limiting long-term stability of the liposome.

Recent advances in extruded polylactic acid-based composites for food packaging: A review.

This review article provides a comprehensive overview of recent progress in polylactic acid (PLA) extrusion, emphasizing its applications in food packaging. PLA has witnessed a significant rise in demand, particularly within the food packaging sector. A notable increase in research publications has been observed in recent years, exploring the extrusion of PLA and PLA-based composite films. In comparison to conventional techniques such as solvent casting, extrusion offers advantages in scalability and environmental sustainability, especially for industrial-scale production. The benefits of this method include faster drying times, enhanced flexibility, consistent film thickness, and less structural defects. Extensive research has focused on the effect of various PLA blends on film properties, including flexibility, elongation, and barrier properties against water vapour and gases. Furthermore, the incorporation of compounds such as antioxidants, antimicrobials, and natural pigments has enabled the development of active and intelligent PLA-based packaging. This article summarizes the types of additives employed to enhance the physicochemical properties of extruded PLA and film performance. Additionally, this article explores the diverse applications of extruded PLA in active and intelligent packaging for various food products.

Advanced fabrication of complex biopolymer microcapsules via RSM-optimized supercritical carbon dioxide solution-enhanced dispersion: A comparative analysis of various microencapsulation techniques.

This work aimed to enhance hemp seed oil encapsulation within a hemp seed protein-alginate complex by optimizing parameters in the solution-enhanced dispersion process, employing supercritical carbon dioxide (SEDS) without reliance on organic solvents or elevated temperatures. By response surface methodology (RSM), the microencapsulation efficacy (MEE), particle size (PS) and peroxide value (PV) was determined with respect to three parameters; temperature (°C), pressure (bar) and feed flow rate (mL/min). The optimum conditions were predicted at temperature (40 °C), pressure (150 bar) and feed flow rate (2 mL/min) to offer an MEE of 89.47%, PS of 7.81 µm and PV of 2.91 (meq/kg oil). In addition, the SEDS method was compared with spray- and freeze-drying for encapsulating hemp seed oil. The findings demonstrated SEDS' superiority, exhibiting exceptional attributes such as the highest MEE, smallest PS and the production of spherical, smooth microcapsules. This highlights its effectiveness in comparison to spray- and freeze-drying methods.

Efficient calculation of α- and ß-nitrogen free energies and coexistence conditions via overlap sampling with targeted perturbation.

A recently introduced solid-phase free-energy calculation method that is based upon overlap sampling with targeted free-energy perturbation is further developed and extended to systems with orientational degrees of freedom. Specifically we calculate the absolute free energy of the linear-molecular nitrogen model of Etter et al., examining both the low-temperature low-pressure α-N(2) structure and the orientationally disordered ß-N(2) phase. In each perturbation (for the α-N(2) phase) to determine the free-energy difference between systems at adjacent temperatures, harmonic coordinate scaling is applied to both the translational and rotational degrees of freedom in the nitrogen molecule to increase the phase-space overlap of the two perturbing systems and consequently, improve the free-energy difference results. For the plastic ß-N(2) phase, a novel method that requires several perturbation paths is introduced to calculate its absolute free energy. Through these methods, the absolute free energies for both the α-N(2) and ß-N(2) phase can be accurately and precisely determined. We find again that the anharmonic contribution to the free energy has weak dependence on system size. The transition properties for the α-N(2) and ß-N(2) phase are also investigated. The α-ß phase transition for the model at atmospheric pressure (0.1 MPa) is found to occur at 40.35 ± 0.01 K with volumetric and entropy changes of 0.44 ± 0.01 cm(3)/mol and 1.99 ± 0.01 cal/mol.K respectively.

The In Vitro α-Glucosidase Inhibition Activity of Various Solvent Fractions of Tamarix dioica and 1H-NMR Based Metabolite Identification and Molecular Docking Analysis.

The Tamarix dioica (T. dioica) is widely used medicinal plant to cure many chronic ailments. T. dioica is being used to manage diabetes mellitus in traditional medicinal system; however, very little scientific evidence is available on this plant in this context. The current study involves the fractionation of crude methanolic extract of T. dioica using n-hexane, ethyl acetate, chloroform, and n-butanol. The screening for antioxidant activity using 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) assay was carried out. The in vitro antidiabetic potential was assessed by measuring α-glucosidase inhibition. Total phenolic and flavonoid contents were also determined for each fraction. The metabolites were identified using highly sensitive and emerging 1H-NMR technique. The results revealed the ethyl acetate fraction as the most potent with DPPH scavenging activity of 84.44 ± 0.21% and α-glucosidase inhibition with IC50 value of 122.81 ± 2.05 µg/mL. The total phenolic and flavonoid content values of 205.45 ± 1.36 mg gallic acid equivalent per gram dried extract and 156.85 ± 1.33 mg quercetin equivalent per gram dried extract were obtained for ethyl acetate fraction. The bucketing of 1H-NMR spectra identified 22 metabolites including some pharmacologically important like tamarixetin, tamaridone, quercetin, rutin, apigenin, catechin, kaempferol, myricetin and isorhamnetin. Leucine, lysine, glutamic acid, aspartic acid, serine, and tyrosine were the major amino acids identified in ethyl acetate fraction. The molecular docking analysis provided significant information on the binding affinity among secondary metabolites and α-glucosidase. These metabolites were most probably responsible for the antioxidant activity and α-glucosidase inhibitory potential of ethyl acetate fraction. The study ascertained the ethnomedicinal use of T. dioica to manage diabetes mellitus and may be a helpful lead towards naturopathic mode for anti-hyperglycemia.

Stabilization and Release of Palm Tocotrienol Emulsion Fabricated Using pH-Sensitive Calcium Carbonate.

Calcium carbonate (CaCO3) has been utilized as a pH-responsive component in various products. In this present work, palm tocotrienols-rich fraction (TRF) was successfully entrapped in a self-assembled oil-in-water (O/W) emulsion system by using CaCO3 as the stabilizer. The emulsion droplet size, viscosity and tocotrienols entrapment efficiency (EE) were strongly affected by varying the processing (homogenization speed and time) and formulation (CaCO3 and TRF concentrations) parameters. Our findings indicated that the combination of 5000 rpm homogenization speed, 15 min homogenization time, 0.75% CaCO3 concentration and 2% TRF concentration resulted in a high EE of tocotrienols (92.59-99.16%) and small droplet size (18.83 ± 1.36 µm). The resulting emulsion system readily released the entrapped tocotrienols across the pH range tested (pH 1-9); with relatively the highest release observed at pH 3. The current study presents a potential pH-sensitive emulsion system for the entrapment and delivery of palm tocotrienols.

Suitability of umbrella- and overlap-sampling methods for calculation of solid-phase free energies by molecular simulation.

We examine the ability of two-stage free-energy perturbation methods to yield solid-phase free energies using a system of harmonically coupled particles as a reference. We consider two ways to construct a reference system, one based on derivatives of the intermolecular potential of the target system of interest (the conventional choice in lattice dynamics), and the other based on analysis of pairwise configurational correlations observed in simulations of the target system. For each case, we consider two perturbation techniques that compute the free energy difference between the target and reference systems while avoiding lengthy thermodynamic integration procedures. The methods are overlap sampling as optimized by Bennett, and umbrella sampling optimized in a similar fashion. Such methods require at most two simulations to yield a result, but they can fail if the target and reference do not share a sufficiently large set of relevant configurations. In particular, failure can be expected for large systems, and we examine the question of how large a system can be before this point is reached. Our test case is a face-centered cubic system of r(-12) soft spheres, and we find that for systems of up to 108 particles the methods are accurate for all temperatures up to melting; for systems of 256 particles the methods begin to break down at about half the melting temperature. Significantly, we observe that the correction to the harmonic reference is only weakly dependent on system size, suggesting an N-hybrid technique in which perturbation is applied to a small system and the result added to a large-system harmonic reference to obtain a good estimate of the correct large-system free energy. We also examine these approaches, along with thermodynamic integration in temperature, with respect to their computational efficiency. We find that Bennett's method using a derivative-based harmonic reference is the most efficient of all those examined, particularly when employed in the N-hybrid method.

Efficient calculation of temperature dependence of solid-phase free energies by overlap sampling coupled with harmonically targeted perturbation.

We examine a method for computing the change in free energy with temperature of a crystalline solid. In the method, the free-energy difference between nearby temperatures is calculated via overlap-sampling free-energy perturbation with Bennett's optimization. Coupled to this is a harmonically targeted perturbation that displaces the atoms in a manner consistent with the temperature change, such that for a harmonic system, the free-energy difference would be recovered with no error. A series of such perturbations can be assembled to bridge larger gaps in temperature. We test this harmonically targeted temperature perturbation (HTTP) method through the application to the inverse-power soft potential, u(r)=ε(σ/r)(n), over a range of temperatures up to the melting condition. Three exponent values (n=12, 9, and 6) for the potential are studied with different crystal structures, specifically face-centered cubic (fcc), body-centered cubic (bcc), and hexagonal close packing. Absolute free energies (classical only) for each system are obtained by implementing the series to near-zero temperature, where the harmonic model becomes very accurate. The HTTP method is shown to provide very precise results, with errors in the free energy smaller than two parts in 10(5). An analysis of the thermodynamic stability of the various structures in the infinite-system limit confirms previous findings. In particular, for n=12 and 9, the fcc structure is stable for all temperatures up to melting, and for n=6, the bcc crystal becomes stable relative to fcc for temperatures above kT/ε=0.802±0.001. The effects of vacancies and other defects are not considered in the analysis.

Impact of Quercetin Encapsulation with Added Phytosterols on Bilayer Membrane and Photothermal-Alteration of Novel Mixed Soy Lecithin-Based Liposome.

This study used highly lipophilic agents with an aim to increase the oxidant inhibitory activity and enhance photothermal stability of a novel mixed soy lecithin (ML)-based liposome by changing the composition of formulation within the membrane. Specifically, the development and optimization of the liposome intended for improving Trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity (TEAC) value and %TEAC loss was carried out by incorporating a natural antioxidant, quercetin (QU). In this context, a focus was set on QU encapsulation in ML-based liposomes and the concentration-dependent solubility of QU was investigated and calculated as encapsulation efficiency (EE). To explore the combined effects of the incorporation of plant sterols on the integrity and entrapment capacity of mixed phospholipid vesicles, conjugation of two types of phytosterols (PSs), namely ß-sitosterol (ßS) and stigmasterol (ST), to mixed membranes at different ratios was also performed. The EE measurement revealed that QU could be efficiently encapsulated in the stable ML-based liposome using 0.15 and 0.1 g/100 mL of ßS and ST, respectively. The aforementioned liposome complex exhibited a considerable TEAC (197.23%) and enhanced TEAC loss (30.81%) when exposed to ultraviolet (UV) light (280-320 nm) over a 6 h duration. It appeared that the presence and type of PSs affect the membrane-integration characteristics as well as photodamage transformation of the ML-based liposome. The association of QU with either ßS or ST in the formulation was justified by their synergistic effects on the enhancement of the EE of liposomes. Parallel to this, it was demonstrated that synergistic PS effects could be in effect in the maintenance of membrane order of the ML-based liposome. The findings presented in this study provided useful information for the development and production of stable QU-loaded ML-based liposomes for food and nutraceutical applications and could serve as a potential mixed lipids-based delivery system in the disease management using antioxidant therapy.

Revising degumming and bleaching processes of palm oil refining for the mitigation of 3-monochloropropane-1,2-diol esters (3-MCPDE) and glycidyl esters (GE) contents in refined palm oil.

Corresponding the high presence of 3-monochloropropane-1,2-diol esters (3-MCPDE) and glycidyl esters (GE) in refined palm oil, this paper re-evaluated degumming and bleaching processes of physical palm oil refining to reduce the amount of said contaminants. Separation-free water degumming was incorporated into the process, and this significantly (p < 0.05) reduced the esters content without compromising other oil qualities. Different types of bleaching earth (BE) were dosed at 0.5, 1.0 and 1.5% to investigate their effects on the esters formation. Results showed that different type of BE had their own optimal dosage for minimum esters formation. Surface acidity was confirmed as the key performance determinant of BE in mitigation of 3-MCPDE and GE in oil rather than the porosity profile. Specifically, BE with high acidity should be avoided, but slightly acidic BE (pH ≃ 5) was found to provide the greatest reduction of esters as compared to natural and neutral activated BE.

Changes in 3-, 2-Monochloropropandiol and Glycidyl Esters during a Conventional Baking System with Addition of Antioxidants.

Shortening derived from palm oil is widely used in baking applications. However, palm oil and the related products are reported to contain high levels of monochloropropandiol (MCPD) ester and glycidyl ester (GE). MCPD and glycidol are known as process contaminants, which are carcinogenic and genotoxic compounds, respectively. The objective was to evaluate the effects of antioxidant addition in palm olein and stearin to the content of MCPD esters and GE in baked cake. Butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA), rosemary extract and tocopherol were used to fortify the samples at 200 mg/kg and in combinations (400, 600 and 800 mg/kg rosemary or tocopherol combined with 200 mg/kg BHA). The MCPD esters and GE content, radical formation and the quality of the fats portion were analyzed. The results showed that palm olein fortified with rosemary extract yielded less 2-MCPD ester. The GE content was lower when soft stearin was fortified with rosemary. ESR spectrometry measurements showed that the antioxidants were effective to reduce radical formation. The synergistic effects of combining antioxidants controlled the contaminants formation. In conclusion, oxidation stability was comparable either in the single or combined antioxidants. Tocopherol in combination with BHA was more effective in controlling the MCPD esters and GE formation.

Effects of storage and yogurt matrix on the stability of tocotrienols encapsulated in chitosan-alginate microcapsules.

Tocotrienol microcapsules (TM) were formed by firstly preparing Pickering emulsion containing tocotrienols, which was then gelled into microcapsules using alginate and chitosan. In this study, we examined the stability of TM during storage and when applied into a model food system, i.e. yogurt. During storage at 40°C, TM displayed remarkably lower tocotrienols loss (50.8%) as compared to non-encapsulated tocotrienols in bulk oil (87.5%). When the tocotrienols were incorporated into yogurt, the TM and bulk oil forms showed a loss of 23.5% and 81.0%, respectively. Generally, the tocotrienols were stable in the TM form and showed highest stability when these TM were added into yogurt. δ-Tocotrienol was the most stable isomer in both forms during storage and when incorporated into yogurt. The addition of TM into yogurt caused minimal changes in the yogurt's color and texture but slightly altered the yogurt's viscosity.

Physical properties and stability evaluation of fish oil-in-water emulsions stabilized using thiol-modified ß-lactoglobulin fibrils-chitosan complex.

Fish oil-in-water emulsions containing fish oil, thiol-modified ß-lactoglobulin (ß-LG) fibrils, chitosan and maltodextrin were fabricated using a high-energy method. The results showed that chitosan coating induced charge reversal; denoting successful biopolymers complexation. A significantly (p<0.05) larger droplet size and lower polydispersity index value, attributed to the thicker chitosan coating at the oil-water interface, were observed. At high chitosan concentrations, the cationic nature of chitosan strengthened the electrostatic repulsion between the droplets, thus conferring high oxidative stability and low turbidity loss rate to the emulsions. The apparent viscosity of emulsions stabilized using thiol-modified ß-LG fibrils-chitosan complex was higher than those stabilized using ß-LG fibrils alone, resulting in the former's higher creaming stability. Under thermal treatments (63°C and 100°C), emulsions stabilized using thiol-modified ß-LG fibrils-chitosan complex possessed higher heat stability as indicated by the consistent droplet sizes observed. Chitosan provided a thicker protective layer that protected the oil droplets against high temperature. Bridging flocculation occurred at low chitosan concentration (0.1%, w/w), as revealed through microscopic observations which indicated the presence of large flocs. All in all, this work provided us with a better understanding of the application of protein fibrils-polysaccharide complex to produce stable emulsion.

Effects of Environmental Stresses and in Vitro Digestion on the Release of Tocotrienols Encapsulated Within Chitosan-Alginate Microcapsules.

Considering the health benefits of tocotrienols, continuous works have been done on the encapsulation and delivery of these compounds. In this study, we encapsulated tocotrienols in chitosan-alginate microcapsules and evaluated their release profile. Generally, these tocotrienols microcapsules (TM) displayed high thermal stability. When subjected to pH adjustments (pH 1-9), we observed that the release of tocotrienols was the highest (33.78 ± 0.18%) under basic conditions. The TM were also unstable against the effect of ionic strength, with a high release (70.73 ± 0.04%) of tocotrienols even at a low sodium chloride concentration (50 mM). As for the individual isomers, δ-tocotrienol was the most sensitive to pH and ionic strength. In contrast, ß-/γ-tocotrienols were the most ionic-stable isomers but more responsive toward thermal treatment. Simulated gastrointestinal model showed that the chitosan-alginate-based TM could be used to retain tocotrienols in the gastric and subsequently release them in the intestines for possible absorption.

Forming a lutein nanodispersion via solvent displacement method: the effects of processing parameters and emulsifiers with different stabilizing mechanisms.

A solvent displacement method was used to prepare lutein nanodispersions. The effects of processing parameters (addition method, addition rate, stirring time and stirring speed) and emulsifiers with different stabilizing mechanisms (steric, electrostatic, electrosteric and combined electrostatic-steric) on the particle size and particle size distribution (PSD) of the nanodispersions were investigated. Among the processing parameters, only the addition method and stirring time had significant effects (p<0.05) on the particle size and PSD. For steric emulsifiers, Tween 20, 40, 60 and 80 were used to produce nanodispersions successfully with particle sizes below 100nm. Tween 80 (steric) was then chosen for further comparison against sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) (electrostatic), sodium caseinate (electrosteric) and SDS-Tween 80 (combined electrostatic-steric) emulsifiers. At the lowest emulsifier concentration of 0.1%, all the emulsifiers invariably produced stable nanodispersions with small particle sizes (72.88-142.85nm) and narrow PSDs (polydispersity index<0.40).

Stability evaluation of lutein nanodispersions prepared via solvent displacement method: The effect of emulsifiers with different stabilizing mechanisms.

The stability of lutein nanodispersions was evaluated during storage and when exposed to different environmental conditions. Lutein nanodispersions were prepared using Tween 80, sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS), sodium caseinate (SC) and SDS-Tween 80 as the emulsifiers. During eight weeks of storage, all samples showed remarkable physical stability. However, only the SC-stabilized nanodispersion showed excellent chemical stability. Under different environmental conditions, the nanodispersions exhibited a varied degree of stability. All nanodispersions showed constant particle sizes at temperatures between 30 and 60°C. However, at pH 2-8, only the SC-stabilized nanodispersion was physically unstable. The addition of NaCl (300-400 mM) only caused flocculation in nanodispersion stabilized by SDS-Tween 80. All nanodispersions were physically stable when subjected to different centrifugation speeds. Only Tween 80-stabilized nanodispersion was stable against the effect of freeze-thaw cycles (no phase separation observed). In this study, there was no particular emulsifier that was effective against all of the environmental conditions tested.

Physicochemical, morphological and cellular uptake properties of lutein nanodispersions prepared by using surfactants with different stabilizing mechanisms.

In this study, we prepared a series of lutein nanodispersions via the solvent displacement method, by using surfactants with different stabilizing mechanisms. The surfactants used include Tween 80 (steric stabilization), sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS; electrostatic stabilization), sodium caseinate (electrosteric stabilization) and SDS-Tween 80 (electrostatic-steric stabilization). We then characterized the resulting lutein nanodispersions in terms of their particle size, particle size distribution, zeta potential, lutein content, flow behavior, apparent viscosity, transmittance, color, morphological properties and their effects on cell viability and cellular uptake. The type of surfactant used significantly (p < 0.05) affected the physical properties of the nanodispersions, but the chemical properties (lutein content) remained unaffected. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) images obtained from this study demonstrated that the solvent displacement method was capable of producing lutein nanodispersions containing spherical particles with sizes ranging from 66.20-125.25 nm, depending on the type of surfactant used. SDS and SDS-Tween 80 surfactants negatively affected the viability of the HT-29 cells used in this study. Thus, for the cellular uptake determination, only Tween 80 and sodium caseinate surfactants were used. The cellular uptake of the lutein nanodispersion stabilized by sodium caseinate was higher than that which was stabilized by Tween 80. All things considered, the type of surfactant with different stabilizing mechanisms did produce lutein nanodispersions with different characteristics. These findings would aid in future selection of surfactants in order to produce nanodispersions with desirable properties.

Copper(II) acetate promoted oxidative cyclization of arylsulfonyl-o-allylanilines.

Tosyl-o-allylaniline 1 undergoes oxidative cyclization to produce tetracycle 2 upon treatment with Cu(OAc)(2) and Cs(2)CO(3) at 120 degrees C. The scope of the reaction was extended to other N-sulfonylated aromatic systems.