Preparation of sodium alginate and chitosan modified curcumin liposomes and study on the formation of protein corona.

Curcumin (CUR) is a polyphenolic compound extracted from plants with a wide range of pharmacological activities. However, the low stability and bioavailability limits its practical application. This work utilized the chitosan (CH) and sodium alginate (SA) to modify the surface of the liposome to improve the stability of curcumin. Studies on the adsorption of pepsin to the surface of liposomes and the formation of protein coronas (PCs) were also carried out to investigate the in vivo behavior of the sodium alginate and chitosan modified curcumin liposomes (SA-CH-LPs). The result shown that the average particle size of SA-CH-LPs was around 220.7 ± 1.68 nm. X-ray Diffractometer (XRD) and differential scanning calorimeter (DSC) confirmed the successful preparation of SA-CH-LPs and illustrated their crystalline characteristics. The cytotoxicity of SA-CH-LPs was determined by CCK-8 assay and the results showed that the cell viability was above 80 % at different concentrations. In vitro results showed that the bioaccessibility of SA-CH-LPs (87.9 %) was better than curcumin liposomes (LPs) (66.4 %), and could better resist to catabolic degradation in the gastrointestinal environment. This work could provide the feasibility for improving the stability and bioaccessibility of the curcumin liposome, as well as given the preliminary evidence for investigation of the interaction with enzyme during the in vivo digestion process for the further application in food.