NANOSTRUCTURED PUMPKIN LEAF PROTEINS: FABRICATION AND ASSEMBLY FOR HYDROXOCOBALAMIN ENCAPSULATION

This research provides constructive information on the correlation between the nanoparticulation process and the properties of protein-based nanoparticles, achieving a precise control of particle size, uniformity, surface charge, and hydroxocobalamin encapsulation possibilities. RuBisCO-rich protein fraction was isolated from pumpkin leaves and was proved to serve as a matrix for the gelation-, pH-, and desolvation-driven assembled nanoparticles. Hydroxocobalamin, as a model of nutrient, was encapsulated successfully into the nanoparticles derived via cold gelation (54%) and antisolvent precipitation (52%) processes, which have the greatest potential for the fabrication of stable nanoparticle structures (127 and 282 nm, -16.3 and -18.4 mV, respectively).