Abstract

Antioxidants from Psidium guajava leaves were extracted with 70% ethanol in water. The extractive solution was concentrated and submitted to spray drying in the presence of technological adjuvants at a proportion of 8 % wet base. Three distinct technological adjuvants were evaluated: β-cyclodextrin (βCD-80), maltodextrin DE10:Aerosil^® (MA-80 - 7:1), and maltodextrin DE10:Encapsia^®:Aerosil^® (MDEA-80 - 5:2:1). The antioxidant activity of the concentrated extract and spray-dried powders was assessed by three antioxidant assays, namely: the2,2'-azinobis(3-ethylbenzthiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS) radical scavenging, ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP), and oxygen radical absorption capacity (ORAC). The 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl radical (DPPH) scavenging capacity was determined previously. The spray-dried powders exhibited strong antioxidant activity (IC₅₀ value = 7.96 to 9.76 μg/mL – DPPH method; 3,125.1 to 3,406.0 μM TE/g dry weight – ABTS method; 4,210 to 4,540 μM FeSO₄ E/g – FRAP method; 1,820-2,020 μM TE/g – ORAC method). The technological adjuvants did not significantly interfere with the antioxidant activity of the dried products, regardless the type of antioxidant assay used. The results here reported strongly evidenced that the concentrated and spray-dried extracts of Psidium guajava are rich sources of natural antioxidants with potential application in food, pharmaceutical, and cosmeceutical products.

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