Encapsulation of saffron bioactive compounds

Abstract Saffron (Crocus Sativus L.) has been utilized in the preparation of different foods all over the world due to its organoleptic properties (color, taste, and flavor), and it also shows therapeutic properties against miscellaneous diseases in traditional medicine. Crocin, picrocrocin, and safranal are the main bioactive compounds of saffron and possess various health beneficial properties. Crocins also belong to the category of water-soluble carotenoids that make them unique natural food colorant alternatives for a variety of food applications. They also have shown to possess anticarcinogenic, antidepressant, antiinflammatory, antioxidant, antiapoptotic, and antithrombotic properties. However, the bioactive compounds of saffron are unstable to various environmental conditions such as temperature, pH, light, oxygen, and the presence of metallic ions, and can be degraded in the gastrointestinal environment that results in low bioavailability and restrict their applications. The aim of this chapter is to evaluate the encapsulation methods mainly spray drying, freeze-drying, ionic gelation, inclusion complexation, electrospinning, nanoparticle, emulsion, liposome and solid lipid nanoparticle preparations that aim to prevent the degradation of those compounds by environmental factors, the destruction in human gastrointestinal tract, and to provide controlled release of compounds and therefore improve their bioavailability.