Morphological characterization of whey protein concentrate admixture of microencapsulated curcumin by spray drying

The effect of high hydrostatic pressure on the structure of whey proteins-guar gum mixture

The effect of high hydrostatic pressure (HHP) on the structural properties of whey protein concentrate (WPC) and guar gum mixture has been investigated at pH 5. WPC (6 % w/v) and guar gum (0.25 % w/v) mixture was freeze dried after adjusting pH and treated at different pressure levels (0-600 MPa) for 0-30 min. The solubility of treated powders decreased significantly (p < 0.05) as treatment time and pressure levels increased. Thermal analysis showed an increase in denaturation temperature after HHP treatment at 600 MPa. A more crystalline structure was observed in samples treated with 600 MPa for 20 and 30 min. With increasing pressure and time, particle size of the samples increased and the highest particle size was belonged to sample treated at 600 MPa for 30 min (759.66 nm). SEM results exhibited that by applying the pressure, irregularity of shapes and particle size increased while the apparent cracks decreased. FTIR results indicated that HHP treatment changed shift in bond and peak intensity. As reported in the current study, the application of HHP treatment as a green physical technology on protein-polysaccharide mixture could be used to improve interaction of protein and polysaccharide.

Strategies for Improving Bioavailability, Bioactivity, and Physical-Chemical Behavior of Curcumin

Curcumin (CCM) is one of the most frequently explored plant compounds with various biological actions such as antibacterial, antiviral, antifungal, antineoplastic, and antioxidant/anti-inflammatory properties. The laboratory data and clinical trials have demonstrated that the bioavailability and bioactivity of curcumin are influenced by the feature of the curcumin molecular complex types. Curcumin has a high capacity to form molecular complexes with proteins (such as whey proteins, bovine serum albumin, β-lactoglobulin), carbohydrates, lipids, and natural compounds (e.g., resveratrol, piperine, quercetin). These complexes increase the bioactivity and bioavailability of curcumin. The current review provides these derivatization strategies for curcumin in terms of biological and physico-chemical aspects with a strong focus on different type of proteins, characterization methods, and thermodynamic features of protein–curcumin complexes, and with the aim of evaluating the best performances. The current literature review offers, taking into consideration various biological effects of the CCM, a whole approach for CCM-biomolecules interactions such as CCM-proteins, CCM-nanomaterials, and CCM-natural compounds regarding molecular strategies to improve the bioactivity as well as the bioavailability of curcumin in biological systems.