Encapsulation Of Lactoferrin For Sustained Release Using Particles From Gas-Saturated Solutions

The particles from gas saturated solutions (PGSS) process were performed to encapsulate lactofer-rin, an iron-binding milk glycoprotein, using supercritical carbon dioxide (scCO(2)). A natural en-teric polymer, shellac, was used as a coating material of lactoferrin carried out by the PGSS pro-cess. Conditions were optimized by applying different temperatures (20-50 degrees C) and pressures (8-10 MPa) and the particles were evaluated for particle shape and size, lactoferrin encapsulation ef-ficiency, Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy to confirm lactoferrin entrapment and in vitro dissolution studies at different pH values. Particles with an average diameter of 75.5 +/- 7 mu m were produced with encapsulation efficiency up to 71 +/- 2%. Furthermore, particles that showed high stability in low pH (pH 1.2) and a sustained release over time (t(2h) = 75%) in higher pH (pH 7.4) suggested an effective encapsulation process for the protection of lactoferrin from gastric di-gestion.