A novel emulsion gel solely stabilized by the hot water extracted polysaccharide from psyllium husk: Self-healing plays a key role

Abstract

The hot water extracted polysaccharide (HP) from psyllium husk has been proved to have unique gelling properties. The present work was first to focus on the self-healing ability of the HP hydrogel. Rheological and macroscopic tests profiled the fast recoverable property of the HP gel network. Then, for the first time, we explored the role of self-healing ability in the fabrication of emulsion gels. The effect of HP concentration on the stability and physical properties of the HP emulsion gel were investigated from the aspects of particle size, macroscopic state, microscopic structure, and rheological properties. The results showed that the emulsion could be well stabilized only by HP. And when HP content reached the gel concentration, the stability remarkably increased. Further, the underlying mechanism was illustrated. It seemed that the interfacial HP interacted with adjacent polysaccharide molecules located on the interface or in the continuous phase to entangle a whole network structure. Consequently, those oil droplets were well immobilized in the network structure. In summary, a stable emulsion gel was simply and feasibly fabricated based on the self-healing property of HP, which is of great potential in food and biomedical applications. • Hot water extracted polysaccharides(HP) from psyllium husk had a good self-healing ability. • The self-healing ability of HP gel played a key role in the fabrication of emulsion gels. • The influence of HP concentration on the stability of emulsion gel was investigated. • The stabilization mechanism of HP emulsion gels was proposed.