Encapsulation and Delivery Systems in the Food Industry

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue aims to present review papers and original articles focusing on current knowledge and breakthroughs on the encapsulation of natural or synthetic bioactive compounds intended for use in the food industry. As there are numerous different encapsulation methods and matrixes, there is a lack of data revealing their release profile, as well as the biological activities of the release products, so a special emphasis is given to the submission of articles related to in vitro and in vivo release studies, followed by biological activity assessment and chemical characterization. The plant and fungus kingdoms synthesize and store numerous different bioactive compounds that are related to various gut health benefits in humans and animals. Additionally, many products from natural sources show the ability to prolong food shelf life. Since plant bioactives have low bioavailability, are unstable under the influence of UV irradiation, moisture, heat, and overall external conditions, and can also be toxic to humans, their encapsulation into suitable carriers has attracted vast scientific attention. The identification and quantification of compounds with food-related biological activities (spoilage and food-borne microbe inhibition, digestion-improving compounds, etc.), their physicochemical characterization, mechanisms of biological activity, and relationships between structure and bioactivity (molecular docking) are welcome as well. Studies related to the complexes of natural products and multiple carriers (as a system for improved controlled release) or natural products in the final formulation are also appreciated.

Research areas may include, but are not limited to, the following:

• In vitro and in vivo study of controlled release from natural-based and synthetic semi-products or products for the food industry;
• Identification and quantification of compounds released into a certain medium, their biological activity assessment, and physicochemical characterization;
• Mechanisms-controlled release and structure–effect relationships;
• Food industry formulations based on natural products with digestion-improving properties;
• Delivery and controlled-release systems for natural or synthetic products with the inhibition potential towards food-borne and food-spoilage microbes;
• Engineering, biotechnology, and nanotechnology related to the production of food safety agents;
• Absorption, distribution, metabolism, excretion, and toxicokinetics;
• Physiological and biochemical effects of natural or synthetic food safety agents on the body;
• Systems for the treatment of water and wastewater in the food industry.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Dr. Branko Bugarski
Guest Editor

Dr. Natalija Čutović
Dr. Aleksandra A. Jovanović
Guest Editor Assistants

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Foods is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• natural bioactive compounds for the food industry
• herbal preparations
• systems for controlled delivery
• testing of digestion performance
• physicochemical characterization/stability
• analysis of texture
• formulation development
• release and permeation testing