Tiradentes University, Northeast Biotechnology Network (PGP - RENORBIO) - Av. Murilo Dantas, 300, Farolândia, Aracaju, SE, 49032-490, Brazil.
Nutrition and Dietetics School, Universidad del Atlántico. Puerto Colombia, Atlántico, Colombia.
Carbohydr Polym. 2019 Feb 1;205:106-116. doi: 10.1016/j.carbpol.2018.10.006. Epub 2018 Oct 6.
Hydrogels are three-dimensional, hydrophilic networks, comprising polymeric chains linked through physical or chemical bonds. In the area of food, hydrogels have great potential to be used in food packaging systems or as carriers of bioactive components. This paper reviews the nature of hydrogels, their 3D network conformation, their functional properties, and their potential applications in food packaging systems. Regarding their potential food packaging applications, hydrogels can present a conformation which allows their use as part of a packaging system to control the humidity generated by food products with high water content. Moreover, the incorporation of nanoparticles into hydrogels may grant them antimicrobial activity. Finally, although the current research in this field is still limited, the results obtained so far are promising for innovative and potential applications in the food field, which also include their integration into intelligent food packaging systems and their direct incorporation into food matrices as a flavor carrier system.
水凝胶是由通过物理或化学键连接的聚合物链组成的三维亲水网络。在食品领域，水凝胶在食品包装系统或作为生物活性成分载体方面具有巨大的应用潜力。本文综述了水凝胶的性质、三维网络构象、功能特性及其在食品包装系统中的潜在应用。关于其潜在的食品包装应用，水凝胶可以呈现出一种构象，使其可以用作包装系统的一部分，以控制高水分含量食品产生的湿度。此外，将纳米粒子掺入水凝胶中可以赋予其抗菌活性。最后，尽管目前该领域的研究仍然有限，但迄今为止获得的结果为食品领域的创新和潜在应用提供了希望，包括将其整合到智能食品包装系统中和直接将其作为风味载体系统掺入食品基质中。
