Preparation, characterization and gastrointestinal stability of silk fibroin nanoparticles loaded with red wine polyphenols

Silk fibroin nanoparticles (SFN) are interesting drug delivery systems due to their high load capacity and low toxicity. The aim of this study was to reveal how SFN load red wine polyphenols (RWP), and to assess their protective effect during the early stages of digestion by using the dynamic gastrointestinal simulator (simgi®) under physiological conditions. RWP-SFN were prepared by incubation of SFN in red wine and recovered by centrifugation. The obtained nanoparticles (particle size of 194.4 ± 2.1 nm and a Zeta potential of −22.7 ± 0.1 mV) showed a significant polyphenol loading content (7386.59 ± 1018.28 μg/g) with a high encapsulation efficiency (66.66 ± 2.58%). They were highly stable during their passage through the digestive tract, being the activity of RWP highly preserved. This data paves the way for future developments of SFN as stabilizers with a wide range of applications in the field of food additives.