Spray-Drying Encapsulation of the Live Biotherapeutic Candidate Akkermansia muciniphila DSM 22959 to Survive Aerobic Storage

Abstract

Akkermansia muciniphila is regarded as a promising next-generation probiotic or live biotherapeutic candidate. Effective delivery strategies must be developed to ensure high enough viability of the probiotic strain throughout its industrial formulation, distribution chain, shelf-life, and, ultimately, the host’s gastrointestinal tract, where it should exert its beneficial effect(s). Among the possible methodologies, spray-drying is considered industrially attractive regarding its costs, efficiency, and scalability, with the due parameter customization. In this study, spray-drying was explored as a one-step process to encapsulate A. muciniphila DSM 22959, testing the drying settings and three different dairy-based matrices. Microcapsule morphology and size was assessed, and viability throughout storage at 4 or 22 °C and simulated gastrointestinal passage was determined. Akkermansia muciniphila microencapsulation by spray-drying, using 10% skim milk and inlet/outlet temperatures of 150/65 °C, is effective in terms of viability stabilization, both during prolonged aerobic storage and exposure to simulated gastrointestinal passage. Akkermansia muciniphila viability was maintained at around 107 CFU/g up to 28 days at 4 °C under aerobic conditions with viability losses inferior to 1 log reduction. This methodology provides the necessary conditions to efficiently deliver the recommended dose of live A. muciniphila in the human gut as a live biotherapeutic product.

Physical and functional stability of spray‐dried jamun (Syzygium cumini L.) juice powder produced with different carrier agents

“…Powder yield is one of the most significant aspects of spray‐dryer performance (Sarabandi et al, 2018). A recovery rate of more than 50% is considered as the criteria for efficient spray drying (Barbosa et al, 2022). The influence of carrier type on powder yield is presented in Figure 3a.…”

Akkermansia muciniphila Encapsulated in Calcium-Alginate Hydrogelated Matrix: Viability and Stability over Aerobic Storage and Simulated Gastrointestinal Conditions

“…For this reason, one of the major aspects when developing probiotic formulations refers to the ability of these to ensure the maintenance of probiotic viability throughout the manufacturing procedure and chain distribution until it reaches the consumer [3]. Additionally, in the literature, a refrigeration temperature of 4 • C has been related with a high viability level of A. muciniphila, either in free or encapsulated forms [15,16,18]. Taking this into account, free and encapsulated A. muciniphila were stored at 4 • C under aerobic conditions and their viability was assayed, at specific timepoints, for 28 days.…”

“…Another investigation conducted by Barbosa and coworkers explored the spray-drying encapsulation technique with different dairy-based matrices to enhance the viability of A. muciniphila over aerobic storage. The results indicated that the viability remained around 10 7 CFU/g up to 28 days at 4 • C under aerobic conditions, using a 10% skim milk matrix [18]. More recently, Almeida and colleagues encapsulated A. muciniphila in a dual hydrocolloid matrix containing alginate and denatured whey protein isolate by emulsification/internal gelation and they assessed the viability of the encapsulated bacteria and free counterpart over 95 days of refrigerated storage under aerobic and anaerobic conditions.…”

“…2 and lower than 1 log-cycle, respectively, at the timepoint of 30 days of refrigerated aerobic storage [16]. Still, in this context, Barbosa and coworkers showed that the encapsulation of A. muciniphila via spray-drying in 10% skim milk using inlet/outlet temperatures of 150/65 • C mitigated the detrimental effects of extended refrigerated aerobic storage for up 60 days, with the subsequent gastrointestinal passage allowing probiotic survival at levels of at least 10 7 CFU/g [18]. Thus, our results suggest that the calcium-alginate capsules produced via extrusion seem to be a promising and adequate strategy to deliver A. muciniphila in an intestinal environment at recommended viability levels for probiotic products (above 10 6 CFU/g).…”

Exploring Freeze-Drying as Strategy to Enhance Viability of Faecalibacterium duncaniae DSM 17677 upon Aerobic Storage and Gastrointestinal Conditions

“…Encapsulation techniques are gathering the attention of industries and the scientific community as a strategy to ensure the high stability/viability of probiotic strains, which is defined as the cellular entrapment/coating within a material or mixture of materials [11][12][13]. Among the several methods that may be used to encapsulate bioactive compounds, including probiotics, drying techniques are frequently preferred because the drying process reduces the formulation's water content, contributing to a higher stability over time [13][14][15][16].…”