Effects of Dynamic High-Pressure Microfluidization Treatment and the Presence of Quercetagetin on the Physical, Structural, Thermal, and Morphological Characteristics of Zein Nanoparticles

The effects of dynamic high-pressure microfluidization (DHPM) and the addition of quercetagetin on the physical, structural, thermal, and morphological characteristics of zein nanoparticles were investigated. The result of Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy revealed that DHPM treatment caused the structural changes of zein, and the primary interactions between zein and quercetagetin were hydrogen bond and hydrophobic effects. Both of the DHPM treatment and the addition of quercetagetin resulted in the decrease of fluorescence intensity, the improved thermal stability, and the reducing of a-helix and the increase of beta-sheets as proved by fluorescence spectra, differential scanning calorimetry thermograms, and circular dichroism spectra, respectively. It was found that the combined DHPM treatment and the addition of quercetagetin with mass ratio of zein to quercetagetin of 40:1 exhibited the morphology of nanospheres with more compact structure and uniform particle distribution.