Co-Encapsulation of Lactiplantibacillus Plantarum Postbiotics and Curcumin in a Biopolymer-Based Nanocomposite: Characterization, Antioxidant and Biological Activity Publisher



Rezagholizadeshirvan A ; Shavali Gilani P ; Nasirifar SZ ; Esmaeili Z ; Shamloo E ; Shokri S
Source: Food Bioscience Published:2026

Abstract

Food spoilage caused by microbial activity is one of the main challenges in food safety, that the use of antioxidant and antibacterial compounds is one of the strategies to reduce it. The aim of this study was to produce a nanocomposite combining the postbiotic Lactiplantibacillus plantarum with curcumin and a chitosan-alginate matrix and evaluate its ability to reduce food spoilage caused by microbial activity. To synthesize the nanocomposite, L. plantarum was cultivated and extracting its postbiotic using filtration. Then, the extracted postbiotic was combined with a chitosan-alginate mixture containing curcumin solution. The produced compound was treated using a reducing agent in an ultrasonic environment, and FT-IR and FE-SEM were used to confirm the structure of the nanocomposite. The results showed significant efficiency (92%) of the chitosan-alginate matrix in encapsulating postbiotics and curcumin. The highest efficiency of reducing inflammation (84.52%) and free radical scavenging capacity (88.92%) was observed in the chitosan-alginate/curcumin/postbiotics mixture. Curcumin was the most effective single antibacterial agent, showing the ability to produce 14.5 mm zones of inhibition against Staphylococcus aureus and 14 mm zones against Escherichia coli. The antibacterial effects of postbiotics showed higher effectiveness when combined with curcumin compared to their separate application. The study found that lactic acid bacteria reduced aflatoxin levels by 65% through their effect on AFM1 concentrations. The produced nanocomposite may functions as a biological control agent which helps enhance food quality and shelf life while providing safe natural methods for food preservation and safety. © 2026 Elsevier Ltd. All rights are reserved, including those for text and data mining, AI training, and similar technologies.