Effect of co-encapsulation using a calcium alginate matrix and fructooligosaccharides with gelatin coating on the survival of Lactobacillus paracasei cells

Abstract

The demand for functional foods is increasing each year because consumers are gaining awareness about the importance of a healthy diet in the proper functioning of the body. Probiotics are among the most commonly known, commercialized, and studied foods. However, the loss of viability of probiotic products is observed during their formulation, processing, and storage. This study aimed to investigate the co-encapsulation of two Lactobacillus paracasei probiotic strains (LBC81 and ELBAL) with fructooligosaccharides (FOS) in a calcium alginate matrix using extrusion technology with gelatin as a coating material. The viability of the strains under gastrointestinal conditions and in storage at low temperature was also assessed. An immobilization yield of more than 59% was observed for both bacterial strains. Exposure to 2% biliary salts led to a decrease in the viability of free cells in the two L. paracasei strains, whereas the viability of microencapsulated cells increased up to 47%. After 35 days of storage at 4°C, the population of free cells was reduced, but microencapsulated cells remained stable after storage at low temperature. LBC81 bacteria microencapsulated with 1.5% FOS coated with gelatin were the most resistant to the stressful environments tested. Therefore, these results showed that co-encapsulation with FOS in a calcium alginate matrix coated with gelatin improved L. paracasei survival and may be useful for the development of more resistant probiotics and new functional foods.

Development and characterization of probiotic (co)encapsulates in biopolymeric matrices and evaluation of survival in a millet yogurt formulation

“…However, encapsulated bacteria may suffer from stress due to environmental changes, resulting in reduced metabolism. Thus, the combination of two or more wall materials (bioactive compounds) in a single matrix was able to improve the viability and efficiency of co‐encapsulated cells compared with that of the encapsulated cells (da Conceição et al., 2021; Eratte et al., 2018; Raddatz & de Menezes, 2021; Vaziri et al., 2018). These results are identical to those obtained by Eratte et al.…”

Recent trends in encapsulation of probiotics in dairy and beverage: A review

“…Gelatin is readily dissolved in hot water and can be cooled to form a gel. It can also be dissolved in polar solvents (da Conceição et al, 2021). Gelatin solution is commonly used as a thermo‐reversible medium because it has viscoelastic flow properties and can be used separately or in combination with other compounds.…”

A Bioengineered Quercetin-Loaded 3D Bio-Polymeric Graft for Tissue Regeneration and Repair

“…It is biocompatible, biodegradable, and one of the most potent clinically approved biomaterials. In earlier studies, to overcome the limitation of both natural polymers, alginate and gelatin blends were used to fabricate polymeric matrices or scaffolds, having significant biocompatibility due to the presence of gelatin short peptides and improving biomechanical strength of alginate [ 33 , 34 , 35 ].…”

“…Therefore, gelatin and alginate are used as a polymeric matrix for the entrapment of drugs and bioactive components to improve their shelf life and enhance activity and efficiency under in situ conditions [ 33 , 36 , 37 ]. Pindolol-loaded alginate–gelatin polymeric cross-linked beads fabricated by solvent-free techniques showed the controlled release of pindolol with improved retention within the bead’s matrix [ 38 ].…”