Assessment of preservative potential of Bunium persicum (Boiss) essential oil against fungal and aflatoxin contamination of stored masticatories and improvement in efficacy through encapsulation into chitosan nanomatrix

Abstract

The study reports the preservative efficacy of Bunium persicum (Boiss) essential oil (BPEO) against fungal and aflatoxin B-1 (AFB(1)) contamination of stored masticatories and boosting of its efficacy through encapsulation into chitosan. BPEO was chemically characterized through GC-MS analysis, which revealed gamma-terpinene as the major compound. The BPEO at 1.2 mu L/mL concentration completely inhibited the growth of toxigenic strain of Aspergillus flavus (AF-LHP-PE-4) along with 15 common food borne moulds and AFB(1) secretion. The BPEO exerts its antifungal action on plasma membrane, as confirmed through ergosterol inhibition, alteration of membrane fluidity and enhancement of cellular ions and 260 and 280 nm absorbing material leakage. The antiaflatoxigenic mechanism of action of BPEO was confirmed through methylglyoxal reduction. Further, BPEO showed strong antioxidant activity (IC50 = 7.36 mu L/mL) as measured by DPPH center dot assay. During in situ investigation, BPEO completely inhibited AFB(1) production in model food (Phyllanthus emblica) system without altering the sensory properties and also exhibited high LD50 value (14,584.54 mu L/kg) on mice. In addition, BPEO was encapsulated into chitosan, characterized and tested for their potential to inhibit growth and AFB(1) production. The mean particle size, PDI and zeta potential of formed BPEO-loaded chitosan nanoparticle (CS-Np-BPEO) were performed to confirm successful encapsulation. The result revealed nanoencapsulated BPEO showed enhanced activity and completely inhibited the growth and AFB(1) production by AF-LHP-PE-4 at 0.8 mu L/mL. Based on findings, it could be concluded that the BPEO and its encapsulated formulation can be recommended as a potential plant-based preservative against fungal and aflatoxin contamination of stored masticatories.