Physicochemical characterization of an arabinoxylan-rich fraction from brewers' spent grain and its application as a release matrix for caffeine

The brewers' spent grain is a by-product generated during brewery process and is a potential source for arabinoxylans (AX) extraction. In the present work, the extraction and characterization of an arabinoxylan-rich fraction from brewers' spent grain (BSG-AX) were performed, and BSG-AX was evaluated as release matrix for caffeine. The BSG-AX showed an AX content of 72% (w/w), a ferulic acid content of 3.52??g/mg BSG-AX, an Ara/Xyl ratio of 0.89, an intrinsic viscosity of 41.18?mL?g?1, and a molecular weight of 43.80?kDa. The studied BSG-AX showed a good antioxidant capacity compared with other polysaccharide gums and was estimated by DPPH (114.41??M Trolox equivalent/g BSG-AX) and FRAP (49.01??mol Fe2+/g BSG-AX) assays. The partial specific volume (0.63?cm3?g?1), loss on drying (10.68%), swelling (10.87%), solubility (80.93%) and electrostatic interactions (by zeta potential, ?3.44 to ?9.17?mV) were determined and used to evaluate the application of the BSG-AX as release matrix. A film containing the BSG-AX, glycerol (as plasticizer) and caffeine (target drug) was prepared as release matrix. Glycerol promoted an increase in the extensibility and the surface smoothness of the BSG-AX-caffeine film. The drug was released (?98%) in about 7?h. These results are promising to concern the design and use of BSG-AX based biofilms for the controlled release of bioactive compounds.