Antitumor applications of ascorbic acid (AA) and its oxidized form dehydroascorbic acid (DHA) can be quite challenging due to their instability and sensitivity to degradation in aqueous media. To overcome this obstacle, we have synthesized solid lipid nanoparticles loaded with ascorbyl palmitate (SLN-AP) with variations in proportions of the polymer Pluronic F-68. SLNs were synthesized using the hot homogenization method, characterized by measuring the particle size, polydispersity, zeta potential and visualized by TEM. To investigate the cellular uptake of the SLN, we have incorporated coumarin-6 into the same SLN formulation and followed their successful uptake for 48 h. We have tested the cytotoxicity of the SLN formulations and free ascorbate forms, AA and DHA, on HEK 293 and U2OS cell lines by MTT assay. The SLN-AP in both formulations have a cytotoxic effect at lower concentrations when compared to ascorbate applied the form of AA or DHA. Better selectivity for targeting tumor cell line was observed with 3% Pluronic F-68. The antioxidative effect of the SLN-AP was observed as early as 1 h after the treatment with a small dose of ascorbate applied (5 µM). SLN-AP formulation with 3% Pluronic F-68 needs to be further optimized as an ascorbate carrier due to its intrinsic cytotoxicity.

The challenge for the meat industry is developing meat products that contain no additives, have similar sensory properties as traditional nitrite-cured products and will persist throughout their shelf life with the same level of quality and safety. In this study, new recipes with no additives or with food additive substitutes of natural origin were compared with commercially available products. It was concluded that the new meat products – cooked ham (as representative of thermally processed meat products) and fermented sausage had concentrations of nitrite and nitrate below the method’s limit of quantification during the entire shelf life period. Acerola has successfully replaced sodium ascorbate as a natural source of ascorbic acid in meat products. Furthermore, it was proved that no phosphates, comparable to those from raw meat, were added to meat products. Using sensory evaluation, cooked ham and fermented sausage were classified into the highest quality category, in terms of color, flavor, odor and texture during the entire shelf life, and were evaluated as microbiologically safe, according to the Guide for Microbiological Criteria for Foodstuffs (Ministry of Agriculture, March 2011).