Enhanced antiproliferative activity of phycoerythrin through microencapsulation Academic Article in Scopus uri icon

abstract

  • Phycoerythrin, a phycobiliprotein recognized for its brilliant crimson hue and essential role in light harvesting during photosynthesis, was extracted from the red alga Porphyridium purpureum. A final concentration of 0.3 mg mL¿1, accompanied by an exceptional purity index of 6.05 was achieved. Then, its stability in response to pH fluctuations was evaluated, elucidating its robust resilience to varying pH conditions. To gauge its antioxidant prowess, two established techniques, the Ferric Reducing Antioxidant Power (FRAP) and 2,2'-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS) assays, were employed, revealing both the inherent antioxidant capacity and a dose-dependent response. The obtained IC50 values were 22.61 mM for FRAP and 0.159 mg mL¿1 for ABTS. After assessing its stability and antioxidant capacity, phycoerythrin encapsulated by an electrospray-assisted technique, employing diverse encapsulating materials. Impressively, each treatment surpassed an encapsulation efficiency threshold of 80%, opening promising avenues for controlled-release systems and targeted applications. The study culminated in an exploration of the protein's antiproliferative potential against colon cancer cells (CaCo2), both in its free and encapsulated states. At the highest tested concentration (0.3 mg mL¿1) at 48 h, the non-encapsulated pigment exhibited a cellular viability of 41.0 ± 2.93%, whereas the encapsulated pigment reached a lower level of 27.27 ± 8.29%. These results show that encapsulation significantly enhances the in vitro anticancer activity of this pigment over time, underscoring its potential in biomedical applications. © The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature B.V. 2023.

publication date

  • February 1, 2024