Poly(vinyl chloride) derived food packaging applications with antioxidative and anticancer properties

Authors: HAZER, BAKI - Bülent Ecevit University; KARAHALILOGLU, ZEYNEP - Aksaray University; Ashby, Richard - Rick

Submitted to: ACS Food Science and Technology
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 3/29/2023
Publication Date: 4/11/2023
Citation: Hazer, B., Karahaliloglu, Z., Ashby, R.D. 2023. Poly(vinyl chloride) derived food packaging applications with antioxidative and anticancer properties. ACS Food Science and Technology. https://doi.org/10.1021/acsfoodscitech.3c00021.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1021/acsfoodscitech.3c00021

Interpretive Summary: Animal fats and vegetable oils (lipids) make up a substantial part of the foods we eat and are routinely used in the food industry for cooking. Unfortunately, because of their chemical content they can easily undergo spoilage through a process known as oxidation. This process is initiated by a chemical reaction between the components of the fat or oil (fatty acids) and oxygen. Therefore, it is beneficial to develop ways of delaying the start of the oxidation process which will prolong the freshness of the fat, oil, or lipid-containing food. In this study we have extended previously published work on the production of antioxidative packaging materials by reacting the natural antioxidants vanillic acid, caffeic acid, cinnamic acid, coumeric acid and naringin (all molecules found in nature) with the well-known plastic packaging material, poly(vinyl) chloride (PVC) to provide new potential wrapping materials that will delay the oxidation process and prolong freshness. We report the synthetic procedure for these new materials, their characterization and their effectiveness in reducing oxidation. In addition, we showed that these newly-synthesized materials have anticancer properties against a human breast cancer cell line (MCF-7) while having little to no effect on normal mouse fibroblast cells. The results of this study indicate that these newly-prepared antioxidative polymers may have potential as both food preservation applications as well as anticancer technologies.

Technical Abstract: Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) is an inexpensive thermoplastic that is primarily used as a packaging material. Currently, the food packaging industry is in need of smart polymeric materials (sometimes termed active packaging materials) that can inhibit food deterioration by reducing autoxidation. In this study, novel PVC polymer derivatives based on the natural antioxidants vanillic acid, cinnamic acid, coumaric acid, caffeic acid, and naringin were prepared and characterized for their chemical structures, molecular weights, thermal and mechanical properties and oxidation-reducing characteristics of linseed oil, a polyunsaturated vegetable oil. Linseed oil was introduced onto the surface of films produced from each PVC derivative and was exposed to white light for up to 24 days to determine the antioxidation behavior of each derivative. The delay times (induction periods) were from 1 to 6 days longer than that of the pristine PVC with the naringin-based derivative being the most effective. Biological activities of the PVC derivatives were also determined in view of their potential in apoptosis in the MCF-7 human breast cancer cell line when compared to the normal L929 mouse fibroblast cell line. Results showed that the PVC-derivatives effectively inhibited the formation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in the MCF-7 cell line in the following sequence: cinnamic acid = caffeic acid = vanillic acid = naringin = coumaric acid, with only a minimal effect on healthy L929 cells. These results indicate that the polymer derivatives produced in this study may have multiple applications in both food preservation and anticancer technologies.