Sintetis Mikrokapsul Kitosan-Ekstrak Daun Ungu (Graptophyllum Pictum L. Griff) Dengan Metode Gelasi Ionik Dan Karakteristiknya

Abstract

Background: Indonesia boasts a rich biodiversity, including a variety of plants that produce secondary metabolites. These compounds play a crucial role in plant maintenance and adaptation mechanisms and are widely used in traditional medicine. One such plant is the purple leaf (Graptophyllum pictum L. Griff). Purple leaf is a plant commonly used as a traditional medicine. It is often found growing wild in rural areas or planted as a hedge or ornamental plant. Purple leaf possesses various pharmacological activities, including antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-diabetic, analgesic, photoprotective, immunomodulatory, nephroprotective, anti-hemorrhoidal, and antibacterial properties. These pharmacological activities stem from the presence of active compounds such as flavonoids, tannins, steroids, alkaloids, polyphenols, and saponins. However, these compounds are sensitive to environmental conditions such as light, temperature, air, and salinity. Purpose: Therefore, a method is needed to maintain the stability of these compounds by microencapsulation with the ionic gelation method. Method: The method used in this study is the manufacture of microcapsules with the ionic gelation method. The gelation method is carried out by mixing purple leaf extract with a natural polymer in the form of chitosan. To find out whether the ionic gelation method is suitable for microencapsulation, morphology and particle size tests were carried out and the total phenol content and efficiency percentage were also calculated. Results: The results of the characterization of purple leaf microcapsules using the ionic gelation method were with the highest total phenol content of 0.125, the highest efficiency percentage was 26.93%, the shape was in the form of microcapsules and the average particle size obtained was 0.65159 m. Conclusion: The ionic gelation method is effective in maintaining compound stability because it does not require high temperatures in the processing process.

Keywords: Purple Leaf, Ionic Gelation, Microcapsules, SEM Test, Particle Size