Author(s): Vardanega, Renata ; Lüdtke, Fernanda Luisa ; Loureiro, Luís ; Gonçalves, Raquel F. S. ; Martins, Joana T. ; Pinheiro, A. C. ; Vicente, A. A.
Date: 2026
Persistent ID: https://hdl.handle.net/1822/98220
Origin: RepositóriUM - Universidade do Minho
Subject(s): Cannabinoids; Lipid-based delivery systems; INFOGEST protocol; Cell viability; Caco-2 cells
Cannabidiol (CBD), a lipophilic compound with promising health benefits, such as analgesic, anti-inflammatory and neuroprotective effects, is characterized by low oral bioavailability, which limit its therapeutic application. To address these limitations, CBD was incorporated into nanostructured lipid carriers (NLCs), either as CBD-rich extract (CBDext) or as an isolate (CBDiso). The resulting systems NLC-CBDext and NLC-CBDiso - were subjected to in vitro digestion using the standardized INFOGEST protocol. The results demonstrated that NLCs significantly improved in vitro CBD bioaccessibility (86 ± 1 % for NLC-CBDext and 94 ± 4 % for NLC-CBDiso) during simulated digestion compared to control formulations consisting of both CBD forms dispersed in hemp seed oil (HSO), which were 77 ± 4 % and 76 ± 5 % for HSO-CBDext and HSO-CBDiso, respectively. Overall, no significant differences were found between NLC-CBDext and NLC-CBDiso, indicating that both NLC formulations are similarly effective in delivering CBD. Furthermore, cytotoxicity assessments revealed that while both forms of free CBD exhibited dose-dependent cytotoxicity against Caco-2 cells, its incorporation into NLCs maintained >80 % cellular viability. These in vitro findings demonstrate that NLCs are promising food-grade carriers for both CBD forms, but further in vivo validation is required prior to stablishing the real potential for functional foods or therapeutic applications.
