Development of resveratrol loaded chitosan-gellan nanofiber as a novel gastrointestinal delivery system

Resveratrol loaded chitosan:gellan (CS:Gel) nanofibers (NFs) were prepared for the first time using electrospinning technique. The NFs were prepared with CS (9% w/v) in trifloroacetic acid and Gel (2.5% w/v) at a concentration ratio of 95:5% w/v. Based on the scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images, the diameters of CS-Gel fibers at a ratio of 95:5 and 90:10% w/v were 166 ± 37 and 291 ± 41 nm, respectively. Resveratrol (0.05% w/v) was loaded in NFs of CS-Gel at a ratio of 95:5. Encapsulation efficiency (EE) of resveratrol in NFs of CS-Gel were 86 ± 6%. The amount of resveratrol delivered in intestine region was in the range of 43–51% of the total encapsulated resveratrol (equivalent to ~840 μM). Antioxidant activities of resveratrol loaded NFs were significantly higher than that of free resveratrol. Furthermore, the resveratrol releasing ability of the NFs was proved through the MTT assay and revealed that the resveratrol NFs have almost the same cytotoxicity against HT29 cancer cells compared to free resveratrol. Based on the obtained results, the prepared NFs hold great potential as drug delivery carriers for resveratrol delivery.