Influence of lipid composition on physicochemical properties of nanoliposomes encapsulating natural dipeptide antioxidant L-carnosine

Natural dipeptide antioxidants (L-carnosine) are recieving increasing attention because of their noticeable potential as biopreservatives in food recent technology. Encapsulation of antioxidants by nanoliposomes could represent an ameliorative approach to overcome the problems related to the direct application of these antioxidant peptides in food. In this study, nanoliposomes prepared from different lipids (DOPC, POPC and DPPC) by thin film hydration method, were assessed by considering their size, c-potential, phase transition temperature and fluidity. One important parameter of interest in this article was to compare the encapsulation efficacy of L-carnosine in three different nanoliposomes using a rapid and precise approach H-1 NMR without the need for physical separation of entrapped and non-entrapped L-carnosine. Furthermore, the morphology of small unilamellar nanoliposomes with different compositions on mica surface was investigated using Atomic Force Microscopy. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.