Orally fast-disintegrating resveratrol/cyclodextrin nanofibrous films as a potential antioxidant dietary supplement

Abstract

Encapsulation of dietary supplements into electrospun cyclodextrin (CD) inclusion complex (IC) nanofibers can pave the way for the development of novel delivery systems with orally fast-disintegrating properties. Here, resveratrol/CD-IC nanofibrous films were fabricated using the electrospinning technique. Resveratrol is a well-known bioactive agent with its antioxidant potential, and it is commonly used in the formulation of dietary supplements. Here, the hydroxypropylated (HP-) βCD and γCD were used for both encapsulation of resveratrol and the electrospinning of free-standing nanofibrous films. SEM imaging confirmed the uniform fibrous morphology of electrospun films. The encapsulation and amorphization of resveratrol by inclusion complexation were verified using various techniques including FTIR, 1H NMR, XRD, DSC, TGA, and computational modeling. Besides the results of all these techniques, phase solubility studies also revealed the more favorable complex formation of resveratrol with HPβCD compared to HP γCD. Nanofibrous films were obtained having ∼100% loading efficiency without a loss during the process. The amorphous distribution of resveratrol and the unique properties of nanofibers ensured the fast disintegration of nanofibrous films in the saliva simulation. The enhanced solubility of resveratrol also ensured an improved antioxidant property. The polymeric resveratrol/pullulan nanofibrous film was also formed as a control sample. CD-IC nanofibrous films showed faster disintegration/dissolution, higher/faster release profile, and significantly better antioxidant potential compared to resveratrol/pullulan-based samples.