Jiang Liming, Zhang Zhiheng, Qiu Chao, Wen Jinsheng
School of Basic Medical Sciences, Health Science Center, Ningbo University, Ningbo 315832, China.
State Key Laboratory of Food Science and Resources, School of Food Science and Technology, Collaborative Innovation Center of Food Safety and Quality Control in Jiangsu Province, International Joint Laboratory on Food Safety, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, China.
Foods. 2024 Aug 2;13(15):2453. doi: 10.3390/foods13152453.
The efficacy of many edible bioactive agents is limited by their low water dispersibility and chemical instability in foods, as well as by their poor bioaccessibility, low absorption, and metabolism within the human gastrointestinal tract. Whey proteins are amphiphilic molecules that can be used to construct a variety of edible carrier systems that can improve the performance of bioactive ingredients. These carrier systems are being used by the food and biomedical industries to encapsulate, protect, and deliver a variety of bioactive agents. In this article, we begin by providing an overview of the molecular and functional characteristics of whey proteins, and then discuss their interactions with various kinds of bioactive agents. The ability of whey proteins to be used as building blocks to assemble different kinds of carrier systems is then discussed, including nanoparticles, hydrogels, oleogels, bigels, nanofibers, nanotubes, and nanoemulsions. Moreover, applications of these carrier systems are highlighted. Different kinds of whey protein-based carriers can be used to encapsulate, protect, and deliver bioactive agents. Each kind of carrier has its own characteristics, which make them suitable for different application needs in foods and other products. Previous studies suggest that whey protein-based carriers are particularly suitable for protecting chemically labile bioactive agents and for prolonging their release profiles. In the future, it is likely that the applications of whey protein-based carriers in the food and pharmaceutical fields will expand.
许多可食用生物活性剂的功效受到其在食品中低水分分散性、化学不稳定性的限制，以及其在人体胃肠道内生物可及性差、吸收和代谢不良的影响。乳清蛋白是两亲性分子，可用于构建多种可食用载体系统，以改善生物活性成分的性能。食品和生物医学行业正在使用这些载体系统来封装、保护和递送各种生物活性剂。在本文中，我们首先概述乳清蛋白的分子和功能特性，然后讨论它们与各种生物活性剂的相互作用。接着讨论乳清蛋白用作构建不同类型载体系统的能力，包括纳米颗粒、水凝胶、油凝胶、双凝胶、纳米纤维、纳米管和纳米乳液。此外，还强调了这些载体系统的应用。不同种类的基于乳清蛋白的载体可用于封装、保护和递送生物活性剂。每种载体都有其自身的特点，这使其适用于食品和其他产品中的不同应用需求。先前的研究表明，基于乳清蛋白的载体特别适合保护化学不稳定的生物活性剂并延长其释放曲线。未来，基于乳清蛋白的载体在食品和制药领域的应用可能会扩大。
