Innovative functional nanodispersion: Combination of carotenoid from Spirulina and yellow passion fruit albedo

The pasture system improves natural antioxidants and functional lipids while reducing lipid peroxidation in Ctenopharyngodon idella (grass carp) burgers during storage

C. idella burgers made from a pasture-based system provide a natural method for producing high-quality fish products, resulting in meat enriched with polyunsaturated fatty acids, particularly EPA and DHA, as well as fat-soluble vitamins and antioxidants. In this study, C. idella meat burgers were made from two types of diets: pasture-based (PS) and grain-based (GS). A total of 36 burgers were stored in plastic trays (three burgers per tray; 12 trays per group), in a refrigeration chamber at 4 °C ± 0.1 °C for 120 h to conduct a shelf-life experiment comparing the meats. Initial fatty acid profile and nutritional composition were determined at 0 h. Additionally, fat-soluble vitamins, antioxidants, TBA, and FRAP were measured at 0, 24, 48, 72, 96, and 120 h. PS burgers exhibited higher concentrations of n-3 LC-PUFAs, vitamins, antioxidants, except for gamma-tocopherol, and FRAP than GS burgers (P < 0.05), while GS burgers had higher TBA and γ-tocopherol (P < 0.05). Both burgers experienced vitamin reduction during storage, with PS burgers maintaining higher concentrations. Vitamin decline correlated with increased oxidation (TBA) in both burger types. These results suggest that pasture-fed burgers have longer shelf life than GS burgers due to reduced oxidation and enhanced stability of bioactive compounds.

Optimization and Characterization of Interspecific Hybrid Crude Palm Oil Unaué HIE OxG Nanoparticles with Vegetable By-Products as Encapsulants

Interspecific hybrid crude palm oil (HCPO) HIE OxG derived from crossbred African oil palm (Elaeis guineensis) and American Caiaué (Elaeis oleifera) is prominent for its fatty acid and antioxidant compositions (carotenoids, tocopherols, and tocotrienols), lower production cost, and high pest resistance properties compared to crude palm oil. Biodegradable and sustainable encapsulants derived from vegetable byproducts were used to formulate HCPO nanoparticles. Nanoparticles with hybrid crude palm oil and jackfruit seed flour as a wall material (N-JSF) and with hybrid crude palm oil and jackfruit axis flour as a wall material (N-JAF) were optimized using a 22 experimental design. They exhibited nanoscale diameters (<250 nm) and were characterized based on their zeta potential, apparent viscosity, pH, color, and total carotenoid content. The nanoparticles demonstrated a monodisperse distribution, good uniformity, and stability (polydispersity index < 0.25; zeta potentials: N-JSF -19.50 ± 1.47 mV and N-JAF -12.50 ± 0.17 mV), as well as high encapsulation efficiency (%) (N-JSF 86.44 ± 0.01 and N-JAF 90.43 ± 1.34) and an optimal carotenoid retention (>85%). These nanoparticles show potential for use as sustainable and clean-label HCPO alternatives in the food industry.

Encapsulation of vitamin D3 using rhamnolipids-based nanostructured lipid carriers

This work had as main objective to encapsulate vitamin D3 (VD3) into nanostructured lipid carriers (NLCs) using rhamnolipids as surfactant. Glycerol monostearate and medium chain triglycerides with 2.625 % of VD3 were used as lipid materials. The three formulations of NLCs with VD3 (NLCs + VD3) were composed by 99 % of aqueous phase, 1 % of lipid phase and 0.05 % of surfactant. The difference between them was the ratio of solid:liquid in lipid phase. The NLCs + VD3 sizes ranged between 92.1 and 108.1 nm. The most stable formulation maintaining their caracteristics for 60 days at 4 °C. The NLCs + VD3 cytotoxicity demonstrated that concentrations of 0.25 mg/mL or lower up had a good biocompatibility in vitro. During the in vitro digestion, formulations with lower sizes and higher content on solid lipid had higher lipolysis rate and consequently higher VD3 bioaccessibility. The rhamnolipids-based NLCs are a good option for the encapsulation of VD3.

Development and Characterization of Yellow Passion Fruit Peel Flour (Passiflora edulis f. flavicarpa)

In this study, the peels of the yellow passion fruit (Passiflora edulis f. flavicarpa) were used to develop a flour that was evaluated in terms of its physicochemical, microscopic, colorimetric, and granulometric characteristics, its total phenolic compound and carotenoid contents, and its antioxidant capacity. Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy measurements were employed to investigate the constituent functional groups, compounds' chemical profiles were assessed by Paper Spray Mass Spectrometry (PS-MS), and the compound's chemical profiles were evaluated by Ultra-Performance Liquid Chromatography (UPLC). This flour presented a light color, heterogeneous granulometry, high carbohydrate, carotenoid, and total phenolic compound contents with high antioxidant capacity. Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) showed a particulate flour, which is supposed to contribute to its compactness. FTIR demonstrated the presence of functional groups corresponding to cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin, constituents of insoluble dietary fiber. The PS-MS analysis suggested the presence of 22 substances, covering diverse component classes such as organic, fatty, and phenolic acids, flavonoids, sugars, quinones, phenylpropanoid glycerides terpenes, and amino acids. This research demonstrated the potential of using Passion Fruit Peel Flour (PFPF) as an ingredient for food products. The advantages of using PFPF comprise the reduction of agro-industrial waste, contribution to the development of a sustainable food system, and increment of food products' functional profile. Moreover, its high content of several bioactive compounds can benefit consumers' health.

Evaluation of strategies to enhance ammoniacal nitrogen tolerance by cyanobacteria

In anaerobic digestion of agro-industrial effluents and livestock wastes, concentrations of ammoniacal nitrogen above 800 mg L^-1 are reported to lead to the eutrophication of water bodies. Through the metabolic versatility of microalgae, this nitrogen source can be used and removed, producing carotenoids, phycobiliproteins, polyhydroxyalkanoates, and fatty acids of industrial interest. The challenge of making it feasible is the toxicity of ammoniacal nitrogen to microalgae. Therefore, three strategies were evaluated. The first one was to find species of cyanobacteria with high ammoniacal nitrogen removal efficiency comparing Arthrospira platensis, Synechocystis D202, and Spirulina labyrinthiformis cultivations. The most promising species was cultivated in the second strategy, where cell acclimatization and increasing of the inoculum were evaluated. The cultivation condition that culminated in the best efficiency of ammoniacal nitrogen removal was combined with the third strategy, which consisted of conducting the fed-batch bioprocess. In the batch mode, ammoniacal nitrogen was supplied only once in one fed and was present in high initial concentrations. In fed-batch, multiple feedings with low concentrations of ammoniacal nitrogen were used to decrease the inhibitory effect of ammoniacal nitrogen. Arthrospira platensis showed high potential for ammoniacal nitrogen removal. Using the highest initial cell concentration of Arthrospira platensis cultivated by fed-batch, an increase in the consumption of NH₃ to 165.1 ± 1.8 mg L^-1 and an ammoniacal nitrogen removal efficiency close to 90% were observed. Under this condition, 180.52 ± 11.67 mg g^-1 of phycocyanin was attained. Also, the fed-batch cultivations have the potential to reduce the biomass cost production by 33% in comparison to batch experiments.

An integration study of microalgae bioactive retention: From microalgae biomass to microalgae bioactives nanoparticle

Microalgae metabolites include biologically active compounds with therapeutic effects such as anticancer, anti-inflammatory and immunomodulation effects. One of the most recent focuses is on utilizing microalgae lipid-based biologically active compounds in food applications. However, most microalgae biological active compounds in their natural forms have common drawbacks like low solubility, low physicochemical stability and strong susceptibility to degradation, which significantly limits their application in foods, therefore, it is important to find solutions to retain their functional properties. In the present work, a comprehensive review on multi-product biorefinery was carried out from upstream processing stage to downstream processing stage, and identify critical processes and factors that impact bioactive material acquisition and retention. Furthermore, since nanoencapsulation technology emerges as an effective solution for microalgae nutraceutical product's retention, this work also focus on the nanoparticle perspective and comprehensively reviews the current nanoencapsulation solutions of the microalgae bioactive extract products. The aim is to depict advances in the formulations of microalage bioactive nanoparticles and provide a critical analysis of the reported nanoparticle formation. Overall, through the investigation of microalgae from biomass to bioactive nanoparticles, we aim to facilitate microalgae nutraceuticals incorporation as high value-added ingredients in more functional food that can improve human health.

Novel bioactive nanoparticles from crude palm oil and its fractions as foodstuff ingredients

Novel bioactive nanoparticles derived from crude palm oil (CPO), palm olein, and palm stearin for use in foodstuff products were produced, and their physicochemical characteristics and stability were evaluated. The nanoparticles were prepared by homogenization, using biodegradable casein or gum arabic as an encapsulating material. The encapsulation efficiency (EE), morphology, long-term stability, particle size, polydispersity index, zeta potential, pH, apparent viscosity, color parameters, total carotenoids, and antioxidant activity were determined. All nanoparticles methods produced spherical nanoparticles with EE higher than 85%. Highly homogeneous small particles (<300 nm) showing a tendency toward a yellow color were observed after 60 days of storage at 4 °C. The nanoparticles showed a carotenoid retention index higher than 40% and an antioxidant activity higher than 1,000 µM Trolox/g oil. The bioactive nanoparticles retained the carotenoids and are proposed as a green innovative product to replace synthetic colorants and antioxidants in foodstuffs.

Beta-carotene and its protective effect on gastric cancer

Beta-carotene is an important natural pigment that is very beneficial to human health. It is widely found in vegetables and fruits. The three main functions are antioxidant effects, cell gap junction-related functions and immune-related functions. Because of its diverse functions, beta-carotene is believed to prevent and treat many chronic diseases. Gastric cancer is one of the most important diseases it can treat. Gastric cancer is a type of cancer with a high incidence. Its etiology varies, and the pathogenesis is complex. Gastric cancer seriously affects human health. The role of beta-carotene, a natural nutrient, in gastric cancer has been explored by many researchers, including molecular mechanisms and epidemiological studies. Molecular studies have mainly focused on oxidative stress, cell cycle, signal transduction pathways and immune-related mechanisms of beta-carotene in gastric cancer. Many epidemiological surveys and cohort studies of patients with gastric cancer have been conducted, and the results of these epidemiological studies vary due to the use of different research methods and analysis of different regions. This paper will summarize the results of these studies, mainly in terms of molecular mechanisms and epidemiological research results, which will provide a systematic basis for future studies of the treatment and prognosis of gastric cancer. This paper will help researchers identify new research directions.

Recent Advances on Nanoparticle Based Strategies for Improving Carotenoid Stability and Biological Activity

Carotenoids are natural pigments widely used in food industries due to their health-promoting properties. However, the presence of long-chain conjugated double bonds are responsible for chemical instability, poor water solubility, low bioavailability and high susceptibility to oxidation. The application of a nanoencapsulation technique has thus become a vital means to enhance stability of carotenoids under physiological conditions due to their small particle size, high aqueous solubility and improved bioavailability. This review intends to overview the advances in preparation, characterization, biocompatibility and application of nanocarotenoids reported in research/review papers published in peer-reviewed journals over the last five years. More specifically, nanocarotenoids were prepared from both carotenoid extracts and standards by employing various preparation techniques to yield different nanostructures including nanoemulsions, nanoliposomes, polymeric/biopolymeric nanoparticles, solid lipid nanoparticles, nanostructured lipid nanoparticles, supercritical fluid-based nanoparticles and metal/metal oxide nanoparticles. Stability studies involved evaluation of physical stability and/or chemical stability under different storage conditions and heating temperatures for varied lengths of time, while the release behavior and bioaccessibility were determined by various in vitro digestion and absorption models as well as bioavailability through elucidating pharmacokinetics in an animal model. Moreover, application of nanocarotenoids for various biological applications including antioxidant, anticancer, antibacterial, antiaging, cosmetics, diabetic wound healing and hepatic steatosis were summarized.

Nanoencapsulation of Promising Bioactive Compounds to Improve Their Absorption, Stability, Functionality and the Appearance of the Final Food Products

The design of functional foods has grown recently as an answer to rising consumers' concerns and demands for natural, nutritional and healthy food products. Nanoencapsulation is a technique based on enclosing a bioactive compound (BAC) in liquid, solid or gaseous states within a matrix or inert material for preserving the coated substance (food or flavor molecules/ingredients). Nanoencapsulation can improve stability of BACs, improving the regulation of their release at physiologically active sites. Regarding materials for food and nutraceutical applications, the most used are carbohydrate-, protein- or lipid-based alternatives such as chitosan, peptide-chitosan and β-lactoglobulin nanoparticles (NPs) or emulsion biopolymer complexes. On the other hand, the main BACs used in foods for health promoting, including antioxidants, antimicrobials, vitamins, probiotics and prebiotics and others (minerals, enzymes and flavoring compounds). Nanotechnology can also play notable role in the development of programmable food, an original futuristic concept promising the consumers to obtain high quality food of desired nutritive and sensory characteristics.

The colorful world of carotenoids: a profound insight on therapeutics and recent trends in nano delivery systems

The therapeutic effects of carotenoids as dietary supplements to control or even treat some specific diseases including diabetic retinopathy, cardiovascular diseases, bacterial infections, as well as breast, prostate, and skin cancer are discussed in this review and also thoughts on future research for their widespread use are emphasized. From the stability standpoint, carotenoids have low bioavailability and bioaccessibility owing to their poor water solubility, deterioration in the presence of environmental stresses such as oxygen, light, and high heat as well as rapid degradation during digestion. Nanoencapsulation technologies as wall or encapsulation materials have been increasingly used for improving food product functionality. Nanoencapsulation is a versatile process employed for the protection, entrapment, and the delivery of food bioactive products including carotenoids from diverse environmental conditions for extended shelf lives and for providing controlled release. Therefore, we present here, recent (mostly during the last five years) nanoencapsulation methods of carotenoids with various nanocarriers. To us, this review can be considered as the first highlighting not only the potential therapeutic effects of carotenoids on various diseases but also their most effective nanodelivery systems.HighlightsBioactive compounds are of deep interest to improve food properties.Carotenoids (such as β-carotene and xanthophylls) play indispensable roles in maintaining human health and well-being.A substantial research effort has been carried out on developing beneficial nanodelivery systems for various carotenoids.Nanoencapsulation of carotenoids can enhance their functional properties.Stable nanoencapsulated carotenoids could be utilized in food products.

Microalgae Encapsulation Systems for Food, Pharmaceutical and Cosmetics Applications

Microalgae are microorganisms with a singular biochemical composition, including several biologically active compounds with proven pharmacological activities, such as anticancer, antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities, among others. These properties make microalgae an interesting natural resource to be used as a functional ingredient, as well as in the prevention and treatment of diseases, or cosmetic formulations. Nevertheless, natural bioactives often possess inherent chemical instability and/or poor solubility, which are usually associated with low bioavailability. As such, their industrial potential as a health-promoting substance might be severely compromised. In this context, encapsulation systems are considered as a promising and emerging strategy to overcome these shortcomings due to the presence of a surrounding protective layer. Diverse systems have already been reported in the literature for natural bioactives, where some of them have been successfully applied to microalgae compounds. Therefore, this review focuses on exploring encapsulation systems for microalgae biomass, their extracts, or purified bioactives for food, pharmaceutical, and cosmetic purposes. Moreover, this work also covers the most common encapsulation techniques and types of coating materials used, along with the main findings regarding the beneficial effects of these systems.

Combination of carotenoids from Spirulina and PLA/PLGA or PHB: New options to obtain bioactive nanoparticles

The use of poly-β-hydroxybutyrate (PHB) is an alternative polymer that can be considered environment friendly and renewable to prepare nanoparticles of carotenoids. This study aimed to develop and characterize aqueous dispersion nanoparticles and lyophilized nanoparticles of carotenoid extract obtained from Spirulina sp. LEB 18 by nanoprecipitation, using poly _d,l-lactic acid (PLA)/poly _d,l-lactic-co-glycolic acid (PLGA) (75:25 w/w) or PHB as encapsulants. The samples were characterized for the particle size, polydispersity index, zeta potential, apparent viscosity, pH, color parameters, ultraviolet-visible (UV/Vis) spectrophotometry, carotenoid profile, encapsulation efficiency, morphology, and thermal analysis. Nanoparticles containing microalgae carotenoid extract showed average particle diameter on a nanoscale (<200 nm), high homogeneity and stability, high thermal stability, and encapsulation efficiency carotenoid (>80%) when compared to nanoparticles containing β-carotene synthetic. PHB or PLA/PLGA as encapsulating material in the production of nanoparticles from microalgae carotenoids can be a polymeric alternative capable of promoting greater stability and application of carotenoids.

Carotenoid-loaded nanocarriers: A comprehensive review

Carotenoids retain plenty of health benefits and attracting much attention recently, but they have less resistance to processing stresses, easily oxidized and chemically unstable. Additionally, their application in food and pharmaceuticals are restricted due to some limitations such as poor bioavailability, less solubility and quick release. Nanoencapsulation techniques can be used to protect the carotenoids and to uphold their original characteristics during processing, storage and digestion, improve their physiochemical properties and enhance their health promoting effects. The importance of nanocarriers in foods and pharmaceuticals cannot be denied. This review comprehensively covers recent advances in nanoencapsulation of carotenoids with biopolymeric nanocarriers (polysaccharides and proteins), and lipid-based nanocarriers, their functionalities, aptness and innovative developments in preparation strategies. Furthermore, the present state of the art encapsulation of different carotenoids via biopolymeric and lipid-based nanocarriers have been enclosed and tabulated well. Nanoencapsulation has a vast range of applications for protection of carotenoids. Polysaccharides in combination with different proteins can offer a great avenue to achieve the desired formulation for encapsulation of carotenoids by using different nanoencapsulation strategies. In terms of lipid based nanocarriers, solid lipid nanoparticles and nanostructure lipid carriers are proving as the encouraging candidates for entrapment of carotenoids. Additionally, nanoliposomes and nanoemulsion are also promising and novel-vehicles for the protection of carotenoids against challenging aspects as well as offering an effectual controlled release on the targeted sites. In the future, further studies could be conducted for exploring the application of nanoencapsulated systems in food and gastrointestinal tract (GIT) for industrial applications.

Effect of Spirulina platensis Biomass with High Polysaccharides Content on Quality Attributes of Common Carp (Cyprinus carpio) and Common Barbel (Barbus barbus) Fish Burgers

Lately, microalgae have been used as natural additives in fish-transformed products to improve their nutritional quality. In this research, the effects of adding Spirulina platensis at concentrations of 0.5, 1 and 1.5% w/v on both the texture and the sensory characteristics of canned burgers were studied. In fact, the addition of Spirulina platensis to fish burgers improves their nutritional composition. Compared to the results of the other fish burger treatments, the treatments that contain 1% of Spirulina platensis had better texture and sensory properties (p < 0.05). Besides, these treatments showed higher swelling ability as well as water and oil holding capacities, due to the important dietary fibers and polysaccharides contents found in Spirulina platensis. No mold or foodborne pathogens were detected in any of the canned burgers up to 8 months of storage at 4 °C. Furthermore, burgers prepared with Spirulina were distinguished by the lowest mean (a* and b*) values (p < 0.05), which shows that the yellow color gradually diminished towards a greenish color. Because of the presence of polysaccharides and pigments (chlorophylls, carotenoids and phycocyanin), Spirulina platensis considerably ameliorates the antioxidant activities of the newly prepared fish burgers. On the whole, we can conclude that Spirulina platensis can be used as a nutritious additive to produce new fish-based products with high alimentary qualities.