Effect of microencapsulation on the antidiabetic and antioxidant activities of Elaeocarpus tectorius (lour.) poir. leaf extracts- An in vitro study

Microencapsulation is a novel, cost-effective technique that helps in protecting the bioactivity of plant extracts. The current study is aimed to prepare chitosan-coated sodium alginate microcapsules containing Elaeocarpus tectorius leaf extracts and to study its antioxidant and antidiabetic properties using in vitro assays. The ethanolic extract of E. tectorius was subjected to UV-VIS and FTIR analysis. The extracts were then subjected to microencapsulation using chitosan and sodium alginate. The synthesized chitosan-sodium alginate microcapsules were characterized using FESEM analysis. Further, the antioxidant and antidiabetic activities of the prepared microcapsules and crude extracts were assessed using in vitro assays. The UV-VIS and FTIR analysis of the leaf extracts revealed the presence of functional groups of phenolics, flavonoids and proteins. The microcapsules exhibited good antidiabetic potential through the inhibition of α- amylase and α- glucosidase enzymes. The antioxidant assays revealed that the microcapsules exhibited significantly higher antioxidant potential compared with the crude extracts. The chitosan-sodium alginate microcapsules containing Elaeocarpus tectorius leaf extracts could be used as an alternative to synthetic antidiabetic drugs and as a rich source of antioxidants.