In vitro ANTIOXIDANT ACTIVITY OF CHITOSAN NANOPARTICLES AND ITS INCORPORATED LYCOPENE

Background: Nanotechnology has found its use in several applications including dental diagnosis, materials and therapeutics thus gaining increased popularity in the dental perspectives. Lycopene belongs to the carotenoids that show good pharmacological properties including antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and anticancer. Chitosan may be a biodegradable, biocompatible polymer considered safe for human dietary use and approved for wound dressing applications. In the field of dentistry, chitosan has been used for the prevention of tooth decay as it eliminates bacteria and provides bacteriostatic properties. Hence this study aims to identify the in vitro antioxidant activity of chitosan nanoparticles and its incorporated Lycopene.

Materials and Methods: This In vitro study was done at Saveetha Dental College and Hospitals. The collection and preparation of lycopene extract was done and stored for further use. Synthesis of chitosan nanoparticles was done with the addition of glacial acetic acid along with Sodium Tripolyphosphate (STPP). Centrifugation was done and characterization of chitosan nanoparticles was done using ultraviolet UV-Viz-spectroscopy. The antioxidant activity of chitosan nanoparticles was measured and compared using the standard ascorbic acid assay.

Results: The results of our study show that the antioxidant activity of chitosan nanoparticles and chitosan-lycopene nanocomposite solution has increased activity when compared to the standard ascorbic acid. Hence, these lycopene mediated chitosan nanoparticles have the potential to be used as an effective antioxidant agent.

Conclusion: As the above study showed effective activity of chitosan-lycopene solution, hence it can be used as an effective antioxidant agent for the management of chronic inflammatory diseases. Lycopene loaded chitosan nanoparticles may show a great promise for the development of a drug delivery system by enhancing the cellular accumulation of lycopene with chitosan.