Microencapsulation is a well-known technology for the lipid delivery system. It prevents the oxidation of fatty acids and maintains the quality of lipid after extraction from oil seed and processing. In flaxseed oil, the amount of ω-3 and ω-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids are 39.90–60.42% and 12.25–17.44%, respectively. A comprehensive review article on the microencapsulation of flaxseed oil has not been published yet. Realizing the great advantages of flaxseed oil, information about different technologies related to the microencapsulation of flaxseed oil and their characteristics are discussed in a comprehensive way, in this review article. To prepare the microcapsule of flaxseed oil, an emulsion of oil-water is performed along with a wall material (matrix), followed by drying with a spray-dryer or freeze-dryer. Different matrices, such as plant and animal-based proteins, maltodextrin, gum Arabic, and modified starch are used for the encapsulation of flaxseed oil. In some cases, emulsifiers, such as Tween 80 and soya lecithin are used to prepare flaxseed oil microcapsules. Physico-chemical and bio-chemical characteristics of flaxseed oil microcapsules depend on process parameters, ratio of oil and matrix, and characteristics of the matrix. As an example, the size of the microcapsule, prepared with spray-drying and freeze-drying ranges between 10–400 and 20–5000 μm, respectively. It may be considered that the comprehensive information on the encapsulation of flaxseed oil will boost the development of functional foods and biopharmaceuticals.

Micro-organisms can attach to food surfaces and develop biofilms which present a concern in food and environmental safety. The main goal of the current study was to investigate the biofilm formation of six non-pathogenic Listeria strains under different stress conditions using a microplate assay. The effect of the weak biofilm-forming non-pathogenic Listeria strains on the biofilm formation of a strong biofilm-forming pathogenic Listeria strain (Listeria monocytogenes #8) was also examined. Listeria innocua CCM4030, Listeria innocua 2885 and Listeria seeligeri/welshimeri 292 showed the same patterns of biofilm formation with increasing NaCl concentrations from 0.05 to 15%, but all the other strains showed a continuously decreasing trend of OD595 in the same conditions. This study showed that in the case of non-pathogenic Listeria strains, higher concentrations of NaCl do not present a stress condition that enhances biofilm formation. Decrease in pH inhibited biofilm formation for all the non-pathogenic Listeria strains. The weak biofilm forming non-pathogenic Listeria strains (Listeria innocua 2885 and Listeria innocua CCM4030) overgrew the strong biofilm-forming Listeria strain (Listeria monocytogenes #8) during biofilm formation. This phenomenon could be beneficial and potentially be used as a novel control strategy to prevent the colonization of the pathogenic Listeria at food processing facilities such as in meat industry.