Encapsulation Effect on the In Vitro Bioaccessibility of Sacha Inchi Oil (Plukenetia volubilis L.) by Soft Capsules Composed of Gelatin and Cactus Mucilage Biopolymers

Use of encapsulated pomegranate seed oil in novel coarse and nanosized materials for improving the storage life of strawberry

Different-sized pomegranate seed oil-based emulsions (coarse (CsP) and nanoemulsions (NsP): 1246 and 325 nm) were successfully prepared. Strawberries treated with NsP and CsP showed a significant decrease (p < 0.05) in yeast-mold counts (TMY) by 1.80 log CFU g-1, and mesophilic aerobic bacteria counts (TMAB) decreased (p < 0.05) by 0.91 log CFU g-1, respectively. CsP- and NsP-treated strawberries had a TPC of 74.45 and 82.35 mg GAE kg-1, respectively, while control samples had a TPC of 44.24 mg GAE kg-1. The strawberries treated with NsP exhibited the highest antioxidant capacity with 179.44 mol TEAC g-1. After treatment with a coarse emulsion, severity levels of A. niger and B. cinerea were 60 and 73 % while the nanoemulsion treatment significantly reduced severity levels to 55.3 and 56 %. The coarse and nanoemulsions may have potential use within the food industry owing to their antioxidant and antifungal properties as well as their ability to enhance strawberry quality and function.

Fabrication of Sacha Inchi Oil-Loaded Microcapsules Employing Natural-Templated Lycopodium clavatum Spores and Their Pressure-Stimuli Release Behavior

Polymeric particles have attracted vast attention for use in various fields, especially as drug carriers and cosmetics, due to their excellent ability to protect active ingredients from the environment until reaching a target site. However, these materials are commonly produced from conventional synthetic polymers, which impose adverse effects on the environment due to their non-degradable nature, leading to waste accumulation and pollution in the ecosystem. This work aims to utilize naturally occurring Lycopodium clavatum spores to encapsulate sacha inchi oil (SIO), which contains active compounds with antioxidant activity, by applying a facile passive loading/solvent diffusion-assisted method. Sequential chemical treatments by acetone, potassium hydroxide, and phosphoric acid were employed to remove native biomolecules from the spores before encapsulation effectively. These are mild and facile processes compared to other synthetic polymeric materials. Scanning electron microscopy and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy revealed the clean, intact, and ready-to-use microcapsule spores. After the treatments, the structural morphology of the treated spores remained significantly unchanged compared to the untreated counterparts. With an oil/spore ratio of 0.75:1.00 (SIO@spore-0.75), high encapsulation efficiency and capacity loading values of 51.2 and 29.3%, respectively, were obtained. Using antioxidant assay (DPPH), the IC₅₀ of SIO@spore-0.75 was 5.25 ± 3.04 mg/mL, similar to that of pure SIO (5.51 ± 0.31 mg/mL). Under pressure stimuli (1990 N/cm³, equivalent to a gentle press), a high amount of SIO was released (82%) from the microcapsules within 3 min. At an incubation time of 24 h, cytotoxicity tests showed a high cell viability of 88% at the highest concentration of the microcapsules (10 mg/mL), reflecting biocompatibility. The prepared microcapsules have a high potential for cosmetic applications, especially as functional scrub beads in facial washing products.

Barley β-glucan inhibits digestion of soybean oil in vitro and lipid-lowering effects of digested products in cell co-culture model

The effect of barley β-glucan on soybean oil digestion characteristics before and after fermentation was studied in an in vitro-simulated gastrointestinal digestion model. The addition of barley β-glucan made the system more unstable, the particle size increased significantly, and confocal laser imaging showed that it was easier to form agglomerates. The addition of barley β-glucan increased the proportion of unsaturated fatty acids in digestion products, and reduced digestibility of soybean oil. In a co-culture model of Caco-2/HT29 and HepG2 cells, the effects of digestive products of soybean oil and barley β-glucan before and after fermentation on lipid metabolism in HepG2 cells were investigated. The results showed that adding only soybean oil digestion products significantly increased triglycerides (TG) content and lipid accumulation in basolateral HepG2 cells. When fermented barley β-glucan was added, lipid deposition was significantly decreased, and the lipid-lowering activity was better than that of unfermented barley β-glucan.

Low Molecular Weight Kappa-Carrageenan Based Microspheres for Enhancing Stability and Bioavailability of Tea Polyphenols

Tea polyphenols (TP) are a widely acknowledged bioactive natural product, however, low stability and bioavailability have restricted their application in many fields. To enhance the stability and bioavailability of TP under certain moderate conditions, encapsulation technique was applied. Kappa–Carrageenan (KCG) was initially degraded to a lower molecular weight KCG (LKCG) by H2O2, and was selected as wall material to coat TP. The obtained LKCG (Mn = 13,009.5) revealed narrow dispersed fragments (DPI = 1.14). FTIR and NMR results demonstrated that the main chemical structure of KCG remained unchanged after degradation. Subsequently, LK-CG and TP were mixed and homogenized to form LK-CG-TP microspheres. SEM images of the microspheres revealed a regular spherical shape and smooth surface with a mean diameter of 5–10 μM. TG and DSC analysis indicated that LK-CG-TP microspheres exhibited better thermal stability as compared to free TP. The release profile of LK-CG-TP in simulated gastric fluid (SGF) showed a slowly release capacity during the tested 180 min with the final release rate of 88.1% after digestion. Furthermore, in vitro DPPH radical scavenging experiments revealed that LK-CG-TP had an enhanced DPPH scavenging rate as compared to equal concentration of free TP. These results indicated that LK-CG-TP microspheres were feasible for protection and delivery of TP and might have extensive potential applications in other bioactive components.