Vieira Marta Vinha, Noore Shaba, Tiwari Brijesh, O'Donnell Colm, Gonçalves Catarina, Pastrana Lorenzo M, Fuciños Pablo
International Iberian Nanotechnology Laboratory, Food Processing and Nutrition Research Group, Braga, Portugal.
Teagasc Food Research Centre, Department of Food Chemistry & Technology, Ashtown, Dublin, Ireland.
Food Chem. 2025 Feb 15;465(Pt 2):142077. doi: 10.1016/j.foodchem.2024.142077. Epub 2024 Nov 15.
The food industry is increasingly turning to microalgae pigments as natural functional colourants to replace potentially harmful synthetic dyes. Among those, phycobiliproteins offer deep and vibrant colours with bioactivities, showing to be a promising alternative. However, incorporating them into a food matrix can be challenging due to their inherent instability, low bioavailability, and off-flavours. Accordingly, the present work aimed to prepare microparticles of phycocyanin (PC) and of an ultrasound-assisted phycoerythrin-rich extract from Porphyridium purpureum (PE) to improve these natural colourants' stability and functional properties. The microparticles were prepared by Nano spray-drying using inulin and gum Arabic as coating materials, resulting in particles with high yield, encapsulation efficiency (from 69 % to 80 %), solubility, and colour retention. Combining inulin and gum Arabic allowed the formation of smaller and more homogeneous particles with increased antioxidant potential when compared to using inulin alone. Moreover, gum Arabic improved the bioaccessibility of PE from 35 % to 51 %, demonstrating the potential of this microparticle formulation to enhance the stability and functionality of phycobiliproteins.
食品工业越来越多地转向微藻色素作为天然功能性色素，以取代潜在有害的合成染料。其中，藻胆蛋白能提供深沉而鲜艳的颜色，并具有生物活性，显示出是一种很有前景的替代品。然而，由于其固有的不稳定性、低生物利用度和异味，将它们纳入食品基质可能具有挑战性。因此，本研究旨在制备藻蓝蛋白（PC）和来自紫球藻的超声辅助富含藻红蛋白提取物（PE）的微粒，以提高这些天然色素的稳定性和功能特性。使用菊粉和阿拉伯胶作为包材，通过纳米喷雾干燥制备微粒，得到了具有高产率、包封率（69%至80%）、溶解度和颜色保留率的颗粒。与单独使用菊粉相比，将菊粉和阿拉伯胶结合使用可形成更小、更均匀的颗粒，且抗氧化潜力增加。此外，阿拉伯胶将PE的生物可及性从35%提高到51%，证明了这种微粒制剂在增强藻胆蛋白稳定性和功能性方面的潜力。
