Today, there is an ever-growing interest on natural food ingredients both by consumers and producers in the food industry. In fact, people are looking for those products in the market which are free from artificial and synthetic additives and can promote their health. These food bioactive ingredients should be formulated in such a way that protects them against harsh process and environmental conditions and safely could be delivered to the target organs and cells. Nanoencapsulation is a perfect strategy for this situation and there have been many studies in recent years for nanoencapsulation of food components and nutraceuticals by different technologies. In this review paper, our main goal is firstly to have an overview of nanoencapsulation techniques applicable to food ingredients in a systematic classification, i.e., lipid-based nanocarriers, nature-inspired nanocarriers, special-equipment-based nanocarriers, biopolymer nanocarriers, and other miscellaneous nanocarriers. Then, application of these cutting-edge nanocarriers for different nutraceuticals including phenolic compounds and antioxidants, natural food colorants, antimicrobial agents and essential oils, vitamins, minerals, flavors, fish oils and essential fatty acids will be discussed along with presenting some examples in each field.

A systematic review on nanoencapsulation of food bioactive ingredients and nutraceuticals by various nanocarriers

Background The encapsulation and liberation technologies for bioactive food ingredients has opened the door to innovative and significant applications in food, nutrition, and pharmaceutical fields via the employment of nanotechnology. Coating materials in the formulation of nanocapsules are mostly lipid, carbohydrate or protein-based. The nanoencapsulation procedure in the food and nutraceutical areas involves the incorporation of natural ingredients, such as volatile additives, polyphenols, aromas, colors, vitamins, enzymes, oils and antimicrobial compounds in nano-sized capsules, providing the opportunities for higher stability and retention for the sensitive molecules against decomposition and loss of nutritional value during the production process or delivery along with offering a sustained release. Scope and approach This review highlights the most recent nanoencapsulation advancements along with the formulations mainly based on lipid components; i.e., nanoemulsions, nanoliposomes and nanostructured lipid carriers in terms of preparation strategies, their classes, composition, attributes, analysis techniques, worked examples, and implementation in functional foods along with their upcoming evolution and future trends. Key findings and conclusions Nanocapsules with lipid formulations are possible alternatives to micro-sized carriers owing to the enormous surface area and the following features which they offer, such as improved solubility, high bioavailability and establishment of sustained liberation of the nanoencapsulated food constituents and nutraceuticals.

Lipid nano scale cargos for the protection and delivery of food bioactive ingredients and nutraceuticals

“Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food” was expressed by Hippocrates more than 2000 years ago and the health benefits of natural food products have been considered for different goals s...

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/10942912.2017.1354017

Polyphenols and their benefits: A review

Background Phenolic compounds1 are one of the main interested nutraceuticals in the food and pharmaceutical industries. The application of phenolics is limited due to their low bioavailability, low solubility, low stability, and un-targeted release. These limitations could be overcome by novel ‘‘lipid-based nano-encapsulation technologies’’ capable of appropriated and targeted delivery functions into foods. Scope and approach In this review, preparation, application, and characterization of lipid-based nanocarriers for phenolics have been considered and discussed including nano-emulsions, nano-scale phospholipids, and nanostructured lipid carriers. The bioavailability of nano-encapsulated phenolic products and capability of them to produce functional foods have been considered as well. Key findings and conclusions In the food and nutraceutical industries, the main aims of loading phenolics into nanocarriers are masking their undesirable flavor for oral administration, providing high stability and high absorption, and better release in gastrointestinal (GIT) conditions. Compared with micro-sized carriers, nanocapsules based on lipid formulations provide more surface area and have the potential to enhance solubility, improve bioavailability, and ameliorate controlled release of the nano-encapsulated phenolic compounds.

Improving the bioavailability of phenolic compounds by loading them within lipid-based nanocarriers

Curcumin (CUR) is a yellow polyphenolic compound derived from the plant turmeric. It is widely used to treat many types of diseases, including cancers such as those of lung, cervices, prostate, breast, bone and liver. However, its effectiveness has been limited due to poor aqueous solubility, low bioavailability and rapid metabolism and systemic elimination. To solve these problems, researchers have tried to explore novel drug delivery systems such as liposomes, solid dispersion, microemulsion, micelles, nanogels and dendrimers. Among these, liposomes have been the most extensively studied. Liposomal CUR formulation has greater growth inhibitory and pro-apoptotic effects on cancer cells. This review mainly focuses on the preparation of liposomes containing CUR and its use in cancer therapy.

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Liposomal curcumin and its application in cancer.

Curcumin is a multifunctional and natural agent considered to be pharmacologically safe. However, its application in the food and medical industry is greatly limited by its poor water solubility, physicochemical instability and inadequate bioavailability. Nanoliposome encapsulation could significantly enhance the solubility and stability of curcumin. Curcumin nanoliposomes exhibited good physicochemical properties (entrapment efficiency = 57.1, particle size = 68.1 nm, polydispersity index = 0.246, and zeta potential = -3.16 mV). Compared with free curcumin, curcumin nanoliposomes exhibited good stability against alkaline pH and metal ions as well as good storage stability at 4 °C. Curcumin nanoliposomes also showed good sustained release properties. Compared with free curcumin, curcumin nanoliposomes presented an equal cellular antioxidant activity, which is mainly attributed to its lower cellular uptake as detected by fluorescence microscopy and flow cytometry. This study provide theoretical and practical guides for the further application of curcumin nanoliposomes.

https://www.mdpi.com/1420-3049/20/8/14293/pdf

The Stability, Sustained Release and Cellular Antioxidant Activity of Curcumin Nanoliposomes

Particle-stabilized W1/O/W2 emulsion gels were fabricated using a two-step procedure: (i) a W1/O emulsion was formed containing saccharose (for osmotic stress balance) and gelatin (as a gelling agent) in the aqueous phase and polyglycerol polyricinoleate (a lipophilic surfactant) in the oil phase; (ii) this W1/O emulsion was then homogenized with another water phase (W2) containing wheat gliadin nanoparticles (hydrophilic emulsifier). The gliadin nanoparticles in the external aqueous phase aggregated at pH 5.5, which led to the formation of particle-stabilized W1/O/W2 emulsion gels with good stability to phase separation. These emulsion gels were then used to coencapsulate a hydrophilic bioactive (epigallocatechin-3-gallate, EGCG) in the internal aqueous phase (encapsulation efficiency = 65.5%) and a hydrophobic bioactive (quercetin) in the oil phase (encapsulation efficiency = 97.2%). The emulsion gels improved EGCG chemical stability and quercetin solubility under simulated gastrointestinal conditions, ...

Xing Chen

Papers

The Stability, Sustained Release and Cellular Antioxidant Activity of Curcumin Nanoliposomes

Coencapsulation of (−)-Epigallocatechin-3-gallate and Quercetin in Particle-Stabilized W/O/W Emulsion Gels: Controlled Release and Bioaccessibility

Improved in vitro digestion stability of (−)-epigallocatechin gallate through nanoliposome encapsulation

Pluronics modified liposomes for curcumin encapsulation: Sustained release, stability and bioaccessibility.

pH-, ion- and temperature-dependent emulsion gels: Fabricated by addition of whey protein to gliadin-nanoparticle coated lipid droplets