A Comparison of Microfluidic-Jet Spray Drying, Two-Fluid Nozzle Spray Drying, and Freeze-Drying for Co-Encapsulating β-Carotene, Lutein, Zeaxanthin, and Fish Oil.

Yongchao Zhu,Yaoyao Peng,Jingyuan Wen,Siew Young Quek

doi:10.3390/foods10071522

Yongchao Zhu, Yaoyao Peng + Show 2 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/foods10071522

Copy DOI

Abstract

Various microencapsulation techniques can result in significant differences in the properties of dried microcapsules. Microencapsulation is an effective approach to improve fish oil properties, including oxidisability and unpleasant flavour. In this study, β-carotene, lutein, zeaxanthin, and fish oil were co-encapsulated by microfluidic-jet spray drying (MFJSD), two-fluid nozzle spray drying (SD), and freeze-drying (FD), respectively. The aim of the current study is to understand the effect of different drying techniques on microcapsule properties. Whey protein isolate (WPI) and octenylsuccinic anhydride (OSA) modified starch were used as wall matrices in this study for encapsulating carotenoids and fish oil due to their strong emulsifying properties. Results showed the MFJSD microcapsules presented uniform particle size and regular morphological characteristics, while the SD and FD microcapsules presented a large distribution of particle size and irregular morphological characteristics. Compared to the SD and FD microcapsules, the MFJSD microcapsules possessed higher microencapsulation efficiency (94.0–95.1%), higher tapped density (0.373–0.652 g/cm3), and higher flowability (the Carr index of 16.0–30.0%). After a 4-week storage, the SD microcapsules showed the lower retention of carotenoids, as well as ω-3 LC-PUFAs than the FD and MFJSD microcapsules. After in vitro digestion trial, the differences in the digestion behaviours of the microcapsules mainly resulted from the different wall materials, but independent of drying methods. This study has provided an alternative way of delivering visual-beneficial compounds via a novel drying method, which is fundamentally essential in both areas of microencapsulation application and functional food development.

Highlights

Visual impairment and blindness greatly reduce the quality of life, and pose huge socioeconomic burdens to families due to the high costs of public health treatments [1]
This result is in agreement with previous findings that the average droplet diameter of microfluidic-jet spray drying (MFJSD) with an electro-hydrodynamic droplet generator (EHDG) is roughly twice the liquid jet diameter or orifice diameter (75 μm) [26], and the size range of particles produced by two fluid nozzle atomizers is 1–30 μm [27]
Huang et al [16] reported that MFJSD microcapsules encapsulated by octenylsuccinic anhydride (OSA) modified starch showed a particle size ranging between 110 and 180 μm, which was around 10 times larger than those produced by conventional spray dryers [28]

Summary

Introduction

Visual impairment and blindness greatly reduce the quality of life, and pose huge socioeconomic burdens to families due to the high costs of public health treatments [1]. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO)’s World Report on Vision 2019 [2], at least 2.2 billion people globally have vision impairments or blindness; from this number, at least 1 billion people have vision impairments that could have been prevented or have not been addressed. Some lipophilic bioactives were reported to be effective at preventing common ocular diseases, including cataracts and age-related macular degeneration (AMD). Studies reported that fish oil is effective in the treatment of dry eye disease and AMD [8,9,10]. An effective way of delivering these functional compounds is of great interest to global researchers

Objectives

Methods

Results

Conclusion