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Summary Development of alternative energy sources, that is, renewable, environmental co‐friendly, and cost effective, is highly imperative to mitigate the harmful effects associated with the use of fossil fuels. Thus, Abrus precatorius seeds are commercially unexploited in the production of bioethanol in Nigeria. The seed was found to contain an appreciable amount of carbohydrates (ca 61%), which are the main source of ethanol. Its lignin content (1.23%) was very low compared to its hydrolyzable components of lignocellulose‐cellulose (13.67%) and hemicellulose (12.53%), making the seed a potential source of bioethanol. The Abrus hydrolysate produced by liquefaction and saccharification, using partially purified α‐amylase and glucoamylase, respectively, had a reducing sugar content of 10.90 mg/mL. Studies on the liquefaction of Abrus seed slurry showed that a maximum reducing sugar of 5.32 mg/mL was released at optimal conditions of substrate concentration (5 g/100 mL), pH 5.0, temperature 60°C, α‐amylase concentration 50 U/mL, and incubation period of 80 minutes, while the saccharification of liquefied slurry released a maximum reducing sugar of 10.90 mg/mL at optimal conditions of pH 5.5, temperature 60°C, glucoamylase concentration 40 U/mL, and incubation period of 90 minutes. The optimization of bioethanol production from Abrus hydrolysate showed that a maximum bioethanol yield of 90.57 ± 0.24% was obtained at an optimal incubation period of 5 days, inoculum size of 5% w/v, and pH of 5.5. The fuel properties of the Abrus bioethanol compared favorably well with standard ethanol, especially in the aspect of heat content (28 580.77 ± 0.05 KJ/Kg), kinematic viscosity at 40°C (1.30 ± 0.02 mm2/s), refractive index (1.36 ± 0.27), and pour point (−18.00 ± 0.07°C). Ash and sulfur were not detected in the produced bioethanol. This study showed that, under normal bioethanol production conditions, inedible Abrus seed flour can serve as cheap and effective feedstock for industrial production of bioethanol. Novelty Statement The depletion of the global reserves of fossil fuels and the increasing environmental concerns due to fossil fuel usage had spurred global interests in renewable alternative energy sources. Most of the carbon‐neutral alternative sources are edible crops, raising concern about food security in the ever‐increasing global population. Here, a good quality bioenergy is developed from a nonfood plant source, Abrus precatorius seed, to mitigate the negative effects of fossil fuel consumption on the environment without interfering with the global food chain.

We studied the effects of emulsifiers on the entrapment yields of a hydrophilic material, calcein, in lipid vesicles formed using the multiple emulsion method. The primary emulsion (W 1 /O) was prepared via sonication while the secondary emulsification that produced the W 1 /O/W 2 multiple emulsions was achieved using the microchannel (MC) emulsification technique. The emulsifiers used in the continuous (W 2 ) phase were Tween ® 80, Pluronic ® F68, and bovine serum albumin (BSA). Lipid vesicles formed via solvent evaporation of the multiple emulsion droplets had an average diameter of about 180 nm, similar to the size of the water droplets in the primary W 1 /O emulsions. The entrapment yields of calcein increased with decreasing concentrations of Tween ® 80 but decreased with decreasing concentrations of Pluronic ® F68 and BSA. The effects of type and concentration of emulsifier were considered in relation to three possible mechanisms: (i) destabilization/solubilization of lipid bilayers by emulsifiers, (ii) reversed-micellar transport of W 1 contents from internal to external water phases through the O phase, and (iii) release of inner water (W 1 ) contents into the continuous (W 2 ) phase via the instability of W 1 /O/W 2 and leakage of W 1 contents. Using the food grade emulsifier Tween ® 80 at a low concentration of about 0.1 or 0.05 wt%, calcein as a model hydrophilic material could be efficiently entrapped (ca. 80%) in homogenously dispersed lipid vesicles.

The potential enhancement of metformin hydrochloride (MH) loaded in lipid vesicles targeting therapeutic efficacy on alloxan-induced diabetic rats was investigated. This involved lipid vesicles formulated with homogenously distributed nano-sized particles by a novel integrated process of multiple emulsification by membrane and solvent evaporation. The average diameter of the water-in-oil (W1/O), W1/O/W2 emulsion droplets, and lipid vesicles was 192 nm, 52 µm, and 173 nm, respectively. The entrapment yield of metformin hydrochloride (MH) in the prepared lipid vesicles was 40.12%. The metformin hydrochloride-loaded lipid vesicles (MH-LLVs) sustained the release of the entrapped drug over a 12-h period and reduced the plasma glucose level of diabetic rats by 77.4% compared with free MH solution (2-h period and 58.2%, respectively) after one week post-diabetic treatment through oral administration of MH-LLV and the free drug. The remarkable improvement in the biochemical parameters recorded in the MH-LLV-treated animals compared with those that received free MH solutions depicted an enhanced kidney function, liver function, as well as oxidative stress status. Pancreatic histology depicted a pancreas with intralobular ducts (ID) and exocrine secretory acini that characterize an intact pancreas, which suggests the ability of the MH-LLVs to restore pancreatic cells to normal, on a continued treatment. Overall, MH-LLV appears an encouraging extended-release formulation with enhanced bioavailability, sustained release, and improved antihyperglycemic potentials.