Proteins as Nano-Carriers for Bioactive Compounds. The Case of 7S and 11S Soy Globulins and Folic Acid Complexation

Isolated 7S and 11S globulins obtained from defeated soy flour were complexated with folic acid (FA) in order to generate nano-carriers for this important vitamin in human nutrition. Fluorescence spectroscopy and dynamic light scattering were applied to follow the nano-complexes formation and for their characterization. Fluorescence experimental data were modeled by the Stern-Volmer and a modified double logarithm approach. The results obtained confirmed static quenching. The number of binding sites on the protein molecule was ~1. The values obtained for the binding constants suggest a high affinity between proteins and FA. Particle size distribution allowed to study the protein aggregation phenomenon induced by FA bound to the native proteins. Z-average manifested a clear trend to protein aggregation. 11S-FA nano-complexes resulted in more polydispersity. ζ-potential of FA nano-complexes did not show a remarkable change after FA complexation. The biological activity of nano-complexes loaded with FA was explored in terms of their capacity to enhance the biomass formation of Lactobacillus casei BL23. The results concerning to nano-complexes inclusion in culture media showed higher bacterial growth. Such a result was attributed to the entry of the acid by the specific receptors concomitantly by the peptide receptors. These findings have technological impact for the use of globulins-FA based nano-complexes in nutraceutical, pharmaceutical and food industries.