Comprehensive Overview of Cyclodextrins as a Solution for UV Protection in Food, Beverages, and Agricultural Products

Abstract

Background: Ultraviolet radiation (UVR) poses a significant threat to the stability, nutritional value, and shelf-life of products across food, beverage, and agricultural sectors. Exposure to UVR accelerates the degradation of sensitive compounds, leading to compromised product safety, altered physical properties, and a reduction in nutritional quality. Cyclodextrins (CDs), characterized by a unique molecular architecture featuring a hydrophobic inner cavity and a hydrophilic exterior, offer a promising mitigation strategy. By forming inclusion complexes with UVR-absorbing compounds, CDs effectively enhance the stability, solubility, and bioavailability of sensitive molecules, thereby providing a robust protective mechanism against UVR-induced degradation.

Aims: This comprehensive review aims to systematically examine and synthesize the applications of cyclodextrin-UVR absorber complexes as protective agents against UVR-induced damage in food products, beverages, and agricultural commodities.

Review Methodology: The methodology involved a thorough review of existing scientific literature and databases. This analysis was specifically focused on evaluating the efficacy of CD inclusion complex formation, characterizing their protective mechanisms, and assessing their potential for scaled industrial applications across the target sectors.

Results: The findings indicate that CD–UVR absorber complexes significantly enhance the stability of UVR-sensitive compounds. In food sectors, CDs prevent oxidation, protect essential nutrients (such as vitamins and antioxidants) from degradation, and facilitate advanced packaging technologies. For beverages, these complexes stabilize color, flavor, and aroma compounds, ensuring quality preservation over extended storage. In agriculture, CDs mitigate the adverse effects of solar UVR exposure, protecting pigments and nutrients while improving crop yield and quality. The primary protective mechanism involves the formation of reversible inclusion complexes that sequester sensitive molecular regions within the CD cavity, thereby limiting exposure to oxygen, light, metals, acids/bases, and volatilization. The overall effectiveness and the dominant protective pathway are contingent upon the specific food matrix (e.g., water, lipids, proteins, alcohol, sugar, pH, and processing method).

Conclusions: CDs-UVR absorber complexes represent an effective strategy for improving product stability and extending the shelf-life in targeted industries. Their unique capacity to form inclusion complexes offers considerable advantages in preserving nutritional integrity, enhancing overall product quality, and promoting sustainable practices. Given the increasing consumer demand for healthier functional, and high-quality products with prolonged shelf-life, cyclodextrin-based technologies are positioned as a vital component in future advancements across these industries. Further rigorous research and transition to industrial-scale applications are essential to fully realize their potential.

 Keywords: Cyclodextrin; UV-Radiation; Food stability; Agrochemicals; Bioavailability; Antioxidant.