In this study, the antifungal compound natamycin was encapsulated in methyl-β-cyclodextrin (heptakis(2,6-di-O-methyl)-β-cyclodextrin, Me-β-CD) to improve its aqueous solubility and stability. The aqueous solubilities of natamycin in the presence of β-CD, 2-hydroxypropyl-β-CD, 6-O-α-maltosyl-β-CD, and Me-β-CD were compared. The Me-β-CD showed the best result to increase the solubility of natamycin in aqueous. The pH stability of natamycin was improved by the formation of inclusion complex with Me-β-CD, especially at acidic conditions. The degradation of natamycin under UV-light exposure followed first-order kinetics with half-life times (t_1/2) of 59.2 and 157.5 min in pure form and Me-β-CD inclusion complex, respectively. The in vitro antifungal activities of natamycin/Me-β-CD complex against Aspergillus niger food pathogen were evaluated. The results demonstrated that the natamycin/Me-β-CD complex could effectively improve the aqueous solubility and photostability of natamycin without compromising in antifungal activities. Finally, the molecular inclusion mechanisms and geometrical configurations of the natamycin/Me-β-CD complex were studied using molecular dynamics simulations. This research may lead to the development of more effective inclusion-based delivery systems to encapsulate and protect lipophilic antimicrobial agents for food applications.

中文翻译：

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分子包裹在甲基-β-环糊精中提高纳他霉素的水溶性和稳定性及其机理

在这项研究中，将抗真菌化合物那他霉素包裹在甲基-β-环糊精（庚基（2,6-二-O-甲基）-β-环糊精，Me - β -CD）中以改善其水溶性和稳定性。在存在的那他霉素的水溶解度β -CD，2-羟丙基β -CD，6-O- α -maltosyl- β -CD，和ME- β -CD进行了比较。Me - β -CD显示出增加那他霉素在水溶液中的溶解度的最佳结果。纳他霉素的pH稳定性可通过与Me- β形成包合物来提高-CD，尤其是在酸性条件下。纳他霉素在紫外线照射下的降解遵循一级动力学，其半衰期（t _1/2）分别为纯形式和Me - β -CD包合物，半衰期（t _1/2）为59.2和157.5分钟。体外游霉素抗真菌活性/ Me的-β -CD对复杂的黑曲霉食物病原体进行了评价。结果表明，游霉素/ Me的-β -CD配合物能有效提高游霉素的水溶解度和光在没有抗真菌活性损害。最后，纳他霉素/ Me- β的分子包合机理和几何构型使用分子动力学模拟研究了CD复合物。这项研究可能会导致开发更有效的基于包裹体的传递系统，以封装和保护用于食品应用的亲脂性抗菌剂。