Comparative studies on the characterization and antioxidant properties of biodegradable alginate films containing ginseng extract

The physical and antioxidant properties of alginate biodegradable film incorporating white, red and extruded white ginseng extracts were investigated. No differences in moisture contents of all alginate film samples were noticeable (p > 0.05) except those film samples incorporated without ginseng extract, which had the highest moisture content. The addition of ginseng extract to alginate film decreased tensile strength and elastic modulus (p < 0.05) but increased the percent elongation at break. The presence of extracts did not significantly affect the water vapor permeability of the film samples. Alginate film containing extruded white ginseng extract at a barrel temperature of 130 degrees C presented the highest (61.12%) free-radical scavenging activity against the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picryhydrazyl radical (DPPH) in methanol, followed by film containing white ginseng extruded at a barrel temperature of 115 degrees C. Following these samples in terms of free-radical scavenging activity were film samples containing red and white ginseng extracts, respectively. These results revealed that extruded white ginseng extract has good potential to be incorporated into alginate to make antioxidant biodegradable film or coating for various food applications. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.