Innovation and improvement in food fortification: Microencapsulation of vitamin B2 and B3 by a spray-drying method and evaluation of the simulated release profiles

Microencapsulation of vitamins: A review and meta-analysis of coating materials, release and food fortification

Vitamins are responsible for providing biological properties to the human body; however, their instability under certain environmental conditions limits their utilization in the food industry. The objective was to conduct a systematic review on the use of biopolymers and lipid bases in microencapsulation processes, assessing their impact on the stability, controlled release, and viability of fortified foods with microencapsulated vitamins. The literature search was conducted between the years 2013-2023, gathering information from databases such as Scopus, PubMed, Web of Science and publishers including Taylor & Francis, Elsevier, Springer and MDPI; a total of 49 articles were compiled The results were classified according to the microencapsulation method, considering the following information: core, coating material, solvent, formulation, process conditions, particle size, efficiency, yield, bioavailability, bioaccessibility, in vitro release, correlation coefficient and references. It has been evidenced that gums are the most frequently employed coatings in the protection of vitamins (14.04%), followed by alginate (10.53%), modified chitosan (9.65%), whey protein (8.77%), lipid bases (8.77%), chitosan (7.89%), modified starch (7.89%), starch (7.02%), gelatin (6.14%), maltodextrin (5.26%), zein (3.51%), pectin (2.63%) and other materials (7.89%). The factors influencing the release of vitamins include pH, modification of the coating material and crosslinking agents; additionally, it was determined that the most fitting mathematical model for release values is Weibull, followed by Zero Order, Higuchi and Korsmeyer-Peppas; finally, foods commonly fortified with microencapsulated vitamins were described, with yogurt, bakery products and gummy candies being notable examples.

Medicinal benefits, biological, and nanoencapsulation functions of riboflavin with its toxicity profile: A narrative review

Riboflavin is a precursor of the essential coenzymes flavin mononucleotide and flavin adenine dinucleotide. Both possess antioxidant properties and are involved in oxidation-reduction reactions, which have a significant impact on energy metabolism. Also, the coenzymes participate in metabolism of pyridoxine, niacin, folate, and iron. Humans must obtain riboflavin through their daily diet because of the lack of programmed enzymatic machineries for de novo riboflavin synthesis. Because of its physiological nature and fast elimination from the human body when in excess, riboflavin consumed is unlikely to induce any negative effects or develop toxicity in humans. The use of riboflavin in pharmaceutical and clinical contexts has been previously explored, including for preventing and treating oxidative stress and reperfusion oxidative damage, creating synergistic compounds to mitigate colorectal cancer, modulating blood pressure, improving diabetes mellitus comorbidities, as well as neuroprotective agents and potent photosensitizer in killing bloodborne pathogens. Thus, the goal of this review is to provide a comprehensive understanding of riboflavin's biological applications in medicine, key considerations of riboflavin safety and toxicity, and a brief overview on the nanoencapsulation of riboflavin for various functions including the treatment of a range of diseases, photodynamic therapy, and cellular imaging.

Food-Grade Microencapsulation Systems to Improve Protection of the Epigallocatechin Gallate

Epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) is a catechin and one of the most abundant polyphenols in green tea, and it is under research for its potential benefit to human health and for its potential to be used in disease treatments, such as for cancer. However, the effectiveness of polyphenols depends on preserving their bioactivity, stability, and bioavailability. The EGCG was microencapsulated by a spray-drying process, using different biopolymers as encapsulating agents (gum arabic, modified chitosan and sodium alginate), in order to overcome some of the limitations of this compound. The microparticles showed a diameter around 4.22 to 41.55 µm (distribution in volume) and different morphologies and surfaces, depending on the encapsulating agent used. The EGCG release was total, and it was achieved in less than 21 min for all the formulations tested. The EGCG encapsulation efficiency ranged between 78.5 and 100.0%. The release profiles were simulated and evaluated using three kinetic models: Korsmeyer-Peppas (R²: 0.739-0.990), Weibull (R²: 0.963-0.994) and Baker-Lonsdale (R²: 0.746-0.993). The Weibull model was the model that better adjusted to the experimental EGCG release values. This study proves the success of the EGCG microencapsulation, using the spray-drying technique, opening the possibility to insert dried EGCG microparticles in different food and nutraceutical products.