| Thymoquinone (TQ), a monoterpenoid quinone, is a major bioactive
component of Nigella sativa L. seeds oil, which has been proven to have
therapeutic and bioactive properties. The current study is carried out to
investigate the encapsulation of N. sativa seeds oil containing TQ using the
mixture of modified starch (MS) and maltodextrin (MD). In this regard, the
effect of the different ratios of MS:MD on encapsulation efficiency (EE), TQ
retention, and other characteristics of particles is investigated. The highest EE
is observed in particles with 80:20 ratio of MS:MD powders achieving more
than 90%, while the sample with 50:50 ratio of the wall materials has the
maximum value of the retention of TQ (61.12%). The increase of MD ratio in
formulations improves the wettability (<3 min) and solubility (>90%) of the
particles, decreases the moisture up to 0.08%, and decreases the EE and TQ
retention till 80% and 55%, respectively. The particles prepared with 50:50
ratio of MS:MD are the best particles with acceptable EE and better TQ
retention is selected to evaluate the stability of TQ during the time. Results
show that the encapsulation of N. sativa seeds oil considerably prevents the
degradation of TQ during storage. |