In this study, thyme essential oil (essential oil to total lipid: 14.23, 20, 25, and 33.33%)-burdened nanoliposomes with/without maltodextrin solution were infused with natural hydrogels fabricated using equal volumes (1:1, v/v) of pea protein (30%) and gum Arabic (1.5%) solutions. The production process of the solutions infused with gels was verified using FTIR spectroscopy. In comparison to the nanoliposome solution (NL₁) containing soybean lecithin and essential oil, the addition of maltodextrin (molar ratio of lecithin to maltodextrin: 0.80, 0.40, and 0.20 for NL₂, NL₃, and NL₄, respectively) to these solutions led to a remarkable shift in particle size (487.10–664.40 nm), negative zeta potential (23.50–38.30 mV), and encapsulation efficiency (56.25–67.62%) values. Distortions in the three-dimensional structure of the hydrogel (H2) constructed in the presence of free (uncoated) essential oil were obvious in the photographs when compared to the control (H1) consisting of a pea protein–gum Arabic matrix. Additionally, the incorporation of NL₁ caused visible deformations in the gel (HNL₁). Porous surfaces were dominant in H1 and the hydrogels (HNL₂, HNL₃, and HNL₄) containing NL₂, NL₃, and NL₄ in the SEM images. The most convenient values for functional behaviors were found in H1 and HNL₄, followed by HNL₃, HNL₂, HNL₁, and H2. This hierarchical order was also valid for mechanical properties. The prominent hydrogels in terms of essential oil delivery throughout the simulated gastrointestinal tract were HNL₂, HNL₃, and HNL₄. To sum up, findings showed the necessity of mediators such as maltodextrin in the establishment of such systems.

The objectives of this study were to investigate antioxidant and enzyme inhibitory activity of ethanolic and aqueous extracts of seven leaves. The antioxidant activity of the leaves was determined by two different methods: DPPH and β-carotene- bleaching test (βC). The enzyme inhibitory activity was evaluated against α-glucosidase. Antioxidant (EC50) and α-glucosidase (IC50) activity were determined as 8.29-238.8 g of leaf/g of DPPH and 35.59-620.29 μg/mL respectively. Among seven leaves studied, leaf of grape (Vitis vinifera), quince (Cydonia oblonga) and nettle (Urtica dioica) exhibited higher antioxidant and α-glucosidase inhibition activity than the rest of the leaves. Total phenolic content (TPC), total flavonoid content (TFC) and total hydrolyzable tannin content (TTC) of the leaves were between 0.22-16.37 mg gallic acid equivalents (GAE), 0.07-9.32 mg catechin equivalents (CE) and 0.49-16.38 tannic acid equivalent (TAE) per g of leaf, respectively.