Recent Progress in Encapsulation and Delivery of Biologically Active Compounds for Food Applications

A special issue of Foods (ISSN 2304-8158). This special issue belongs to the section "Food Packaging and Preservation".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 15 June 2024 | Viewed by 4536

Special Issue Editors

Department of Food Engineering, Universidade de Sao Paulo - USP, Sao Paulo, Brazil
Interests: encapsulation; vegetable extracts; spray chilling; spray drying; complex coacervation; probiotics
Department of Food Engineering, Faculty of Animal Science and Food Engineering, Universidade de São Paulo, Sao Paulo, Brazil
Interests: nanoparticles; bioactives; by-products; biodegradable films/coatings
Department of Food Engineering, Laboratory of Encapsulation and Functional Foods (LEnAlis), School of Animal Science and Food Engineering, University of Sao Paulo, Av. Duque de Caxias Norte 225, Pirassununga 13635-000, SP, Brazil
Interests: microencapsulation; encapsulation; nanoencapsulation; food processing and engineering; nanoparticles

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

It is our pleasure to introduce this Special Issue of Foods, entitled “Recent Progress in Encapsulation and Delivery of Biologically Active Compounds for Food Applications”.

The development of functional food containing biologically active compounds and/or probiotics has increased all over the world in recent decades. Despite this and the incontestable commercial interest for this kind of food, there are still several challenges for the application of some bioactive compounds, due to the fact that many of them are highly reactive, unstable, and/or insoluble, and some can provide off-flavor to the product.  In this context, microencapsulation has been studied and applied for overcoming such drawbacks; additionally, this technique has been found to promote the controlled delivery of bioactive compounds in their site of action. Moreover, microencapsulation can produce a complete change in the functionality of the bioactive compounds, providing new applications for them.

In this context, this Special Issue aims to highlight recent progress in processes for encapsulation and studies on the delivery of bioactive compounds for food applications.

Prof. Dr. Carmen Sílvia Favaro-Trindade
Prof. Dr. Milena Martelli-Tosi
Prof. Dr. Samantha Cristina De Pinho
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Keywords

  • functional food
  • biologically active compounds
  • microencapsulation

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

15 pages, 2350 KiB  
Article
Grape Pomace Rich-Phenolics and Anthocyanins Extract: Production by Pressurized Liquid Extraction in Intermittent Process and Encapsulation by Spray-Drying
by Jessica Thaís do Prado Silva, Millene Henrique Borges, Carlos Antonio Cardoso de Souza, Carmen Sílvia Fávaro-Trindade, Paulo José do Amaral Sobral, Alessandra Lopes de Oliveira and Milena Martelli-Tosi
Foods 2024, 13(2), 279; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods13020279 - 16 Jan 2024
Viewed by 756
Abstract
A considerable number of grape pomaces are generated annually. It represents a rich source of bioactive compounds, such as phenolic compounds and anthocyanins. Pressurized liquid extraction (PLE) has emerged as a green technology for recovering bioactive compounds from vegetal matrixes. In our study, [...] Read more.
A considerable number of grape pomaces are generated annually. It represents a rich source of bioactive compounds, such as phenolic compounds and anthocyanins. Pressurized liquid extraction (PLE) has emerged as a green technology for recovering bioactive compounds from vegetal matrixes. In our study, PLE parameters (temperature, number of cycles, and rinse volume) have been studied to produce grape pomace extracts with high bioactive content using an experimental design. The experimental data obtained were adjusted to linear and quadratic models. The first-order model was better in predicting anthocyanins contents (TA, R2 = 0.94), whereas the second-order model was predictive for total phenolic compounds (TPC, R2 = 0.96). The main process parameter for the recovery of bioactive compounds was temperature, and the results showed opposing behaviors concerning TPC and TA, as it is difficult to optimize conditions for both. The extract containing the higher concentration of TPC (97.4 ± 1.1 mg GAE/g, d.b.) was encapsulated by spray-drying using maltodextrin as wall material. Particles presented with a spherical shape (~7.73 ± 0.95 μm) with a recovery yield of 79%. The results demonstrated that extraction followed by encapsulation of grape pomace extract is a good strategy to simplify future applications, whether for food, cosmetics or pharmaceutical fields. Full article
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14 pages, 519 KiB  
Article
Development of Pectin Particles as a Colon-Targeted Marjoram Phenolic Compound Delivery System
by María de las Nieves Siles-Sánchez, Paula García-Ponsoda, Irene Fernandez-Jalao, Laura Jaime and Susana Santoyo
Foods 2024, 13(2), 188; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods13020188 - 06 Jan 2024
Viewed by 606
Abstract
Marjoram is a culinary herb that has been widely employed in folk medicine and presents a high content in phenolics. Thus, the aim of this project was to design formulations to encapsulate phenolic compounds from marjoram to allow their release in the colon. [...] Read more.
Marjoram is a culinary herb that has been widely employed in folk medicine and presents a high content in phenolics. Thus, the aim of this project was to design formulations to encapsulate phenolic compounds from marjoram to allow their release in the colon. For this purpose, pectin was used as an encapsulating agent, applying two different encapsulation techniques (ionic gelation and spray-drying), followed by a CaCl2 bath. The ionic gelation technique showed a higher yield (77%) compared to spray-drying (31%), and the particles obtained were smaller (267 nm). However, the microparticles obtained by spray-drying presented a higher encapsulation efficiency (93%). Moreover, spray-dried microparticles protected a higher percentage of the encapsulated phenolics from the action of gastrointestinal pHs and enzymes. Hence, the results showed that spray-drying was a more appropriate technique than ionic gelation for the encapsulation of marjoram phenolics in order to protect them during the gastrointestinal step, facilitating their arrival in the colon. These microparticles would also be suitable for inclusion in food matrices for the development of phenolic colon delivery systems. Full article
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25 pages, 3195 KiB  
Article
Microencapsulation of Juniper and Black Pepper Essential Oil Using the Coacervation Method and Its Properties after Freeze-Drying
by Alicja Napiórkowska, Arkadiusz Szpicer, Iwona Wojtasik-Kalinowska, Maria Dolores Torres Perez, Herminia Dominguez González and Marcin Andrzej Kurek
Foods 2023, 12(23), 4345; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods12234345 - 01 Dec 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1230
Abstract
Essential oils are mixtures of chemical compounds that are very susceptible to the effects of the external environment. Hence, more attention has been drawn to their preservation methods. The aim of the study was to test the possibility of using the classical model [...] Read more.
Essential oils are mixtures of chemical compounds that are very susceptible to the effects of the external environment. Hence, more attention has been drawn to their preservation methods. The aim of the study was to test the possibility of using the classical model of complex coacervation for the microencapsulation of essential oils. Black pepper (Piper nigrum) and juniper (Juniperus communis) essential oils were dissolved in grape seed (GSO) and soybean (SBO) oil to minimize their loss during the process, and formed the core material. Various mixing ratios of polymers (gelatin (G), gum Arabic (GA)) were tested: 1:1; 1:2, and 2:1. The oil content was 10%, and the essential oil content was 1%. The prepared coacervates were lyophilized and then screened to obtain a powder. The following analyses were determined: encapsulation efficiency (EE), Carr index (CI), Hausner ratio (HR), solubility, hygroscopicity, moisture content, and particle size. The highest encapsulation efficiency achieved was within the range of 64.09–59.89%. The mixing ratio G/GA = 2:1 allowed us to obtain powders that were characterized by the lowest solubility (6.55–11.20%). The smallest particle sizes, which did not exceed 6 μm, characterized the powders obtained by mixing G/GA = 1:1. All powder samples were characterized by high cohesiveness and thus poor or very poor flow (CI = 30.58–50.27, HR = 1.45–2.01). Full article
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15 pages, 3302 KiB  
Article
Characterization, Thermal Stability and Antimicrobial Evaluation of the Inclusion Complex of Litsea cubeba Essential Oil in Large-Ring Cyclodextrins (CD9–CD22)
by Chuan Cao, Peng Xie, Yibin Zhou and Jing Guo
Foods 2023, 12(10), 2035; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods12102035 - 17 May 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1369
Abstract
Food safety issues are becoming increasingly important as a result of contamination with foodborne pathogenic bacteria. Plant essential oil is a safe and non-toxic natural antibacterial agent that can be used to develop antimicrobial active packaging materials. However, most essential oils are volatile [...] Read more.
Food safety issues are becoming increasingly important as a result of contamination with foodborne pathogenic bacteria. Plant essential oil is a safe and non-toxic natural antibacterial agent that can be used to develop antimicrobial active packaging materials. However, most essential oils are volatile and require protection. In the present study, LCEO and LRCD were microencapsulated through coprecipitation. The complex was investigated using GC-MS, TGA, and FT-IR spectroscopy. According to the experimental results, it was found that LCEO entered the inner cavity of the LRCD molecule and formed a complex with LRCD. LCEO had a significant and broad-spectrum antimicrobial effect against all five microorganisms tested. At 50 °C, the microbial diameter of the essential oil and its microcapsules showed the least change, indicating that this essential oil has high antimicrobial activity. In research on microcapsule release, LRCD has proven to be a perfect wall material for controlling the delayed release of essential oil and extending the duration of antimicrobial activity. LRCD effectively extends antimicrobial duration by encasing LCEO, thus improving its heat stability and antimicrobial activity. The results presented here indicate that LCEO/LRCD microcapsules can be further utilized in the food packaging industry. Full article
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