Functionalities of chitosan conjugated with lauric acid and L-carnitine and application of the modified chitosan in an oil-in-water emulsion

The aim of this research was to conjugate chitosan (CT) with lauric acid (LA) and L-carnitine (CNT) to yield a product that is water-soluble at neutral pH and has surface, antimicrobial, and antioxidant activities. The resulting CT-LA-CNT is water-soluble at neutral pH, in contrast with CT and CT-LA, which require the aid of acid to become soluble. Concerning antimicrobial activity, for S. aureus, the minimum bactericidal concentration of CT was lower than those of CT-LA or CT-LA-CNT, while the three compounds exhibited similar bactericidal activity against E. coli. CT-LA-CNT was also used to study the oxidative stability of soybean oil in an oil-in-water (O/W) emulsion; sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) and Tween 80 and Span 80 (TS), an emulsifier mixture, were used as controls for comparison. The results showed that CT-LA-CNT was better than SDS and TS at protecting the lipid from oxidation.

Automated summary

The research aimed to conjugate chitosan with lauric acid and L-carnitine to produce a water-soluble product with antimicrobial and antioxidant activities at neutral pH. The resulting product CT-LA-CNT showed lower minimum bactericidal concentration for S. aureus compared to CT and CT-LA, and exhibited better oxidative stability in protecting lipid from oxidation than the control groups.