Abstract—α-Lipoic acid (6, 8-dithiooctanoic acid) has been attributed with many salubrious benefits such as aid in reduction of oxidative stress, reducing hypertension, improving lipid profile and averting risks of diabetes. However, the biomolecule being vulnerable to environmental oxidation is required to be encapsulated. Nanoliposomal encapsulation of α-lipoic acid was conducted in the present study using solvent evaporation followed by probe sonication with the objective of enhancing the stability of the biomolecule. The encapsulation was accomplished with optimized process parameters that were 3 g lipid phase (soya phosphatidylcholine: Tween 80= 1:1) with 150 mg lipoic acid; with the aim to achieve the recommended dietary supplementation of the biomolecule conveniently through the consumption of the liposome. The encapsulated α-lipoic acid was assessed for parameters such as encapsulation efficiency, antioxidant activity, zeta potential, and FE-SEM analyses. The data revealed successful entrapment of the biomolecule with 97% of encapsulation efficiency and desired attributes that indicate liposomal entrapment to be a suitable technique for encapsulation of α-lipoic acid.
 

Index Terms—nanoliposome, probe sonication, lipoic acid, antioxidant potency

Cite: Sayantani Dutta, Pintu Choudhary, Moses J. A., and Anandharamakrishnan C., "Liposomal Encapsulation of α-lipoic Acid as a Food Supplement," International Journal of Food Engineering, Vol. 5, No. 2, pp. 111-115, June 2019. doi: 10.18178/ijfe.5.2.111-115