Eugenol improves physical and chemical stabilities of nanoemulsions loaded with β-carotene

Food-grade nanoemulsions are potential vehicles of labile lipophilic compounds such as beta-carotene, but much work is needed to improve physical and chemical stabilities. The objective of this work was to study impacts of eugenol on physical and chemical stabilities of beta-carotene-loaded nanoemulsions prepared with whey protein and lecithin. The combination of whey protein and lecithin resulted in stable nanoemulsions with eugenol added at 10% mass of soybean oil. Nanoemulsions, especially with eugenol, drastically reduced the degradation of beta-carotene during ambient storage, heating at 60 and 80 degrees C, and UV radiation at 254, 302, and 365 nm. The droplet diameter of the nanoemulsion without eugenol increased from 153.6 to 2273 nm after 30-day ambient storage, contrasting with no significant changes of nanoemulsions with eugenol. Heating or UV radiation up to 8 h did not significantly change the droplet diameter. Therefore, eugenol can be used to improve the stability of nanoemulsion delivery systems. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.