Exploring Bioactivity of Natural Compounds: From Encapsulation Strategies to Drug Discovery for Biomedical Targets (BRIDGE)

The project aims to investigate natural compounds derived from grape and apple by-products aspotential inhibitors of protein aggregation associated with Huntington's disease and other neurodegenerative disorders.As part of a broader multi-institutional research project, the researcher's work at UNIBZ will focus on optimizing sustainable extraction and purification methods to recover bioactive molecules—specifically polyphenols—from grape pomace and apple peels. Particular attention will be paid to ultrasound-assisted extraction, microwave-assisted extraction, and supercritical CO2 extraction. The recovered compounds will be chemically characterized using chromatographic and mass spectrometry techniques. To enhance their stability, solubility, and bioavailability, the selected compounds will subsequently be encapsulated... (see call)