Gelatin and Gum Arabic are naturally occurring biopolymers that have been used extensively to form microcapsules, typically through complex coacervation. These formulations have seen applications in pharmaceutical, perfumatory, and other industries due to their protective and controlled release properties. Unfortunately, these properties require the polymer shells to be crosslinked using toxic chemicals such as glutaraldehyde or formaldehyde, and often require long curing times of several hours or more. The use of these hazardous chemicals hinders their use in food and pharmaceutical products and causes environmental and waste disposal complications during processing. Alternatives such as transglutaminase or genipin have been studied but have only seen limited use. In this work, we describe a simple, nontoxic method wherein gelatin methacrylate/gum arabic microcapsules can be formed using complex coacervation and rapidly crosslinked by UV curing in the presence of a photoinitiator. The resulting microcapsules are characterized based on their morphology and processing conditions. A example application as a controlled release platform is also shown.

Synthesis of photocrosslinkable gelatin/gum Arabic microcapsules as a safe and nontoxic alternative to traditional crosslinkers

ACS Spring 2022

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.