Optimising the ratio of long‐ to short‐chain triglycerides of the lipid phase to enhance physical stability and bioaccessibility of lycopene‐loaded beverage emulsions

Abstract

Oil-in-water beverage emulsions (pH3.2) with different long-to short-chain triglyceride (LCT to SCT) ratios were used to encapsulate lycopene. Beverages containing 3% w/w oil from carrier lipids were prepared as follows (w/w): 100:0, 75:25, 50:50, 25:75, and 0:100 (corn oil:tributyrin). The beverages prepared using a low LCT to SCT ratio (0:100) were physically unstable mainly due to Ostwald ripening phenomena, as indicated by confocal laser microscopy. The oil droplet size was significantly reduced for emulsions formulated with corn oil (2.6 lm) compared with tributyrin (5.4 lm). Lycopene was not bioaccessible in beverages formulated with tributyrin only and bioaccessibility increased significantly with increasing the LCT to SCT ratio. Data indicated that bioaccessibility for lycopene is 2.7% for emulsions with high LCT ratios (>75). Results indicate that the carrier lipid phase of emulsion-based systems is critical for the formulation of functional drinks for the delivery of lipophilic bioactive compounds.

A review of recent progress in improving the bioavailability of nutraceutical‐loaded emulsions after oral intake

“…The hydrophobic domains of mixed micelles assembled from SCFAs or MCFAs are too small to accommodate relatively large hydrophobic molecules (like carotenoids), which leads to a relatively low bioaccessibility. Emulsions formulated from long‐chain triglycerides (LCTs) have been shown to be more effective than those formulated from short‐chain triglycerides at increasing the bioaccessibility of carotenoids, such as β‐carotene and lycopene (Meroni & Raikos, 2018; Raikos et al., 2018). Emulsions formulated using a mixture of medium‐chain triglycerides (MCTs) and LCTs as the oil phase were shown to enhance carotenoid bioaccessibility, with the rate and extent of lipid digestion increasing with increasing MCT ratio in the droplets (Yao et al., 2019).…”

Encapsulation of Lipid-Soluble Bioactives by Nanoemulsions

“…The oil particle size significantly decreased for emulsions prepared with corn oil (2.6 μm) in comparison to tributyrin (5.4 μm). The results indicated with addition of LCT the bioaccessibility of lycopene was significantly improved [ 80 ].…”

A lipase-conjugated carbon nanotube fiber-optic SPR sensor for sensitive and specific detection of tributyrin

“…Triglycerides can be divided into different types according to their alkyl groups, among which tributyrin is the most important short-chain triglyceride. 2 In addition, tributyrin plays a vital role in food safety. It is used as an additive in pasta, 3 cold drinks, 4 condiments, 5 the daily chemical industry, 6 and many other industries.…”