Active Biodegradable Film Based on Chitosan and Cenostigma Nordestinum' Extracts for Use in the Food Industry

Bioactive biodegradable films are emerging biomaterials in the food packaging field. This study aims to investigate the effect of different Cenostigma nordestinum extracts (leaves, bark, and exudate bark) on the antioxidant, antimicrobial, and some physicochemical properties of chitosan films. Different concentrations of the extracts were added to the film matrix and the resulting incorporated films were evaluated for their bioactive, optical, mechanical, and water vapor barrier properties. The extracts of C. nordestinum proved to be natural sources of promising bioactive compounds with good antioxidant and antimicrobial properties. The films incorporated with C. nordestinum extracts were opaquer, more resistant to tension, and less permeable to water vapor when compared to chitosan-control films. The incorporation of 300 µg mL−1 of the bark extract in the chitosan film increased the tensile strength from 113.97 ± 0.42 to 164.82 ± 0.85 MPa, and reduced the water vapor permeability from 2.11 ± 0.02 to 1.51 ± 0.04 × 10−10 g (m s Pa)−1. Additionally, the incorporated films presented excellent antioxidant capacity and discrete antimicrobial activity. The ongoing results demonstrate that bioactive chitosan-films incorporated with different C. nordestinum extracts are quite promising for the production of ecologically sustainable packaging for the food industry.