Explore the vast range of titles available.

Tannic acid (TA) possesses antioxidant, anticancer, and antibacterial properties. However, its pH sensitivity, protein cross-linking properties, and susceptibility to oxidation restrict its application. To address these challenges, W/O/W multiple emulsified TA microcapsules were developed using soybean protein isolate (SPI) as the natural wall material emulsifier through a two-step emulsification and spray drying process. The encapsulation efficiency of the obtained TA microcapsules was 87.6%, and TA’s thermal stability was significantly improved. TA microcapsules effectively reduced the acidity and irritability of TA, eliminated protein flocculation, and enhanced biocompatibility. Notably, the cell viability of the TA microcapsule (>94%) was significantly higher than free TA (65.6%). The storage stability test revealed that the microcapsules maintained structural integrity, with a retention rate of 96% after 10 days of storage. In vitro release studies of TA microcapsules demonstrated a sustained-release effect within 24 h. Simulated digestion studies further elucidated the protective effect of microcapsules on TA during gastric digestion. These multi-structured microcapsules based on SPI effectively address the limitations associated with TA utilization and enhance its potential for dual oral/transdermal administration in biomedical and cosmetic applications.

This review provides an overview of major microengineering emulsification techniques for production of monodispersed droplets. The main emphasis has been put on membrane emulsification using Shirasu Porous Glass and microsieve membrane, microchannel emulsification using grooved-type and straight-through microchannel plates, microfluidic junctions and flow focusing microfluidic devices. Microfabrication methods for production of planar and 3D poly(dimethylsiloxane) devices, glass capillary microfluidic devices and single-crystal silicon microchannel array devices have been described including soft lithography, glass capillary pulling and microforging, hot embossing, anisotropic wet etching and deep reactive ion etching. In addition, fabrication methods for SPG and microseive membranes have been outlined, such as spinodal decomposition, reactive ion etching and ultraviolet LIGA (Lithography, Electroplating, and Moulding) process. The most widespread application of micromachined emulsification devices is in the synthesis of monodispersed particles and vesicles, such as polymeric particles, microgels, solid lipid particles, Janus particles, and functional vesicles (liposomes, polymersomes and colloidosomes). Glass capillary microfluidic devices are very suitable for production of core/shell drops of controllable shell thickness and multiple emulsions containing a controlled number of inner droplets and/or inner droplets of two or more distinct phases. Microchannel emulsification is a very promising technique for production of monodispersed droplets with droplet throughputs of up to 100 l h −1 .

Water-in-oil-in-water (W1/O/W2) emulsions are complex delivery systems for polyphenols amongst other bio-actives. To stabilize the oil–water interphase, dairy proteins are commonly employed, which are ideally replaced by other, more sustainable sources, such as insect proteins. In this study, lesser mealworm (Alphitobius diaperinus) protein concentrate (LMPC) is assessed and compared to whey protein (WPI) and pea protein (PPI), to stabilize W1/O/W2 emulsions and encapsulate a commercial polyphenol. The results show that LMPC is able to stabilize W1/O/W2 emulsions comparably to whey protein and pea protein when using a low-energy membrane emulsification system. The final droplet size (d4,3) is 7.4 μm and encapsulation efficiency is between 72 and 74%, regardless of the protein used. Under acidic conditions, the LMPC shows a similar performance to whey protein and outperforms pea protein. Under alkaline conditions, the three proteins perform similarly, while the LMPC-stabilized emulsions are less able to withstand osmotic pressure differences. The LMPC stabilized emulsions are also more prone to droplet coalescence after a freeze–thaw cycle than the WPI-stabilized ones, but they are the most stable when exposed to the highest temperatures tested (90 °C). The results show LMPC’s ability to stabilize multiple emulsions and encapsulate a polyphenol, which opens the door for application in foods.

Emulsions stabilized by adsorbed particles—Pickering particles (PPs) instead of surfactants and emulsifiers are called Pickering emulsions. Here, we review the possible uses of Pickering multiple emulsions (PMEs) in the food industry. Food-grade PMEs are very complex systems with high potential for application in food technology. They can be prepared by traditional two-step emulsification processes but also using complex techniques, e.g., microfluidic devices. Compared to those stabilized with an emulsifier, PMEs provide more benefits such as lower susceptibility to coalescence, possible encapsulation of functional compounds in PMEs or even PPs with controlled release, etc. Additionally, the PPs can be made from food-grade by-products. Naturally, w/o/w emulsions in the Pickering form can also provide benefits such as fat reduction by partial replacement of fat phase with internal water phase and encapsulation of sensitive compounds in the internal water phase. A possible advanced type of PMEs may be stabilized by Janus particles, which can change their physicochemical properties and control properties of the whole emulsion systems. These emulsions have big potential as biosensors. In this paper, recent advances in the application of PPs in food emulsions are highlighted with emphasis on the potential application in food-grade PMEs.

Multidrug-resistant microorganisms have become a significant public health threat, and traditional antibiotics are becoming ineffective. Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is a promising alternative that utilizes photosensitizers and light to produce Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS) that can kill microorganisms. Zinc phthalocyanine (ZnPc) is a promising photosensitizer due to its strong affinity for encapsulation in nanoemulsions and its antimicrobial properties. In this study, nanoemulsion was prepared using Miglyol 812N, a surfactant, and distilled water to dissolve hydrophobic drugs such as ZnPc. The nanoemulsion was characterized by its particle size, polydispersity index, Transmission Electron Microscope and Zeta potential, and the results showed that it was an efficient nanocarrier system that facilitated the solubilization of hydrophobic drugs in water. The use of ZnPc encapsulated in the nanoemulsion produced through the spontaneous emulsification method resulted in a significant reduction in cell survival percentages of gram-positive Staphylococcus aureus and gram-negative Escherichia coli by 85% and 75%, respectively. This may be attributed to the more complex cell membrane structure of E. coli compared to S. aureus. This demonstrates the potential of nanoemulsion-based PDT as an effective alternative to traditional antibiotics for treating multidrug-resistant microorganisms.

The present study aims at designing a thermosensitive gel prepared from w1/o/w2 multiple microemulsions (MMEs) for the vaginal delivery of siRNA. The w1/o/w2 MMEs were prepared by two-step emulsifications: the first step was to prepare primary emulsions (w1/o) by low energy emulsification (LEE); the second step was to obtain stable w1/o/w2 MMEs by self-emulsifying. An extensive formulation optimization process was undertaken. The final w1/o/w2 MMEs could be formed in ddH 2 O, phosphate buffer solution (PBS, pH 7.4) and 1640 culture media with diameter size about 166.5 ± 13.1, 271.0 ± 11.1 and 278.7 ± 12.1 nm respectively. The release rates of siRNA from solutions, MMEs and MMEs-gels were completed within 2 h, 6 h and13 h respectively. The transfection efficiency of MMEs was confirmed both in vitro and in vivo. The relative target gene expressions of MMEs were 0.07 ± 0.05% vs. 0.37 ± 0.06% in Hela cells against Lipofectamine2000® and 1.88% ± 0.00% vs. 9.65% ± 0.02% in mouse vaginal mucosa against PEI. Good biocompatibility of MMEs was verified by cytotoxicity and pathological studies. Overall, our results indicated the potential of the MMEs-gel system for the vaginal delivery of siRNA.

Microchannel (MC) emulsification for the preparation of monodisperse oil-in-water (O/W) and water-in-oil-in-water (W/O/W) emulsions containing palm oil as the oil phase was investigated for application as basic material solid/semi-solid lipid microspheres for delivery carriers of nutrients and drugs. Emulsification was characterized by direct observation of droplet generation under various operation conditions, as such, the effects of type and concentration of emulsifiers, emulsification temperature, MC structure, and flow rate of to-be-dispersed phase on droplet generation via MC were investigated. Sodium caseinate (SC) was confirmed as the most suitable emulsifier among the examined emulsifiers, and monodisperse O/W and W/O/W emulsions stabilized by it were successfully obtained with 20 to 40 µm mean diameter (dm) using different types of MCs.

Double emulsions are a type of multiple emulsions, which can be defined as a multicompartmentalized system where the droplets are dispersed into the continuous phase containing other emulsions. Although double food-grade emulsions have been manufactured, there is a lack of scientific background related to the influence of different processing conditions. This work analyses the influence of processing variables in (W1/O/W2) double emulsions: passes through the valve homogenizer, pressure applied, lipophilic emulsifier concentration, the ratio between the continuous phase (W2) and the primary emulsion (W1/O), and the incorporation of xanthan gum (XG) as a stabilizer. The results obtained show that these emulsions can be obtained after selecting suitable processing conditions, making them easily scalable in industrial processes. In terms of droplet size distribution, the input of higher energy to the system (20 MPa) during emulsification processing led to emulsions with smaller droplet sizes (D3,2). However, more monodispersed emulsions were achieved when the lowest pressure (5 MPa) was used. As for the number of passes, the optimal (emulsions more monodispersed and smaller droplet sizes) was found around 2–3 passes, regardless of the valve homogenizer pressure. However, emulsions processed at 20 MPa involved lower encapsulation efficiency (EE) than emulsions processed at 5 MPa (87.3 ± 2.3 vs. 96.1 ± 1.8, respectively). The addition of XG led to more structured emulsions, and consequently, their kinetic stability increased. The results obtained indicated that a correct formulation of these W1/O/W2 double emulsions allowed the optimal encapsulation of both hydrophilic and lipophilic bioactive compounds. Thus, the development of food matrices, in the form of multiple emulsions, would allow the encapsulation of bioactive compounds, which would result in the development of novelty food products.

Introduction: Glatiramer acetate (GA) is a newly emerged therapeutic peptide to reduce the frequency of relapses in multiple sclerosis (MS). Despite its good performance in controlling MS, it is not widely used due to daily or biweekly subcutaneous injections due to rapid degradation and body clearance. Therefore, implant design with sustained release leads to prolonged biological effects by gradually increasing drug exposure and protecting GA from rapid local degradation. Methods: Different emulsion methods, PLGA type, surfactant concentration, drug/polymer ratio, drying processes, stirring method, and other variables in preliminary studies modified the final formulation. The release kinetics were studied through mechanistic kinetic models such as zero-order, Weibull, Higuchi, etc. In this study, all challenges for easy scale-up, methodological detail, and a simple, feasible setup in mass production were discussed. Results: The optimized formulation was obtained by 1:6 drug/PLGA, 0.5% w/w polyvinyl alcohol, and 0.75% w/w NaCl in the external aqueous phase, 1:10 continuous phase to dispersed phase ratio, and without any surfactant in the primary emulsion. The final freeze-dried particles presented a narrow distributed size of 1-10 µm with 7.29% ± 0.51 drug loading and zero-order release behavior with appropriate regression correlation (R2 98.7), complete release, and only 7.1% initial burst release. Conclusion: Therefore, to achieve improvement in patient compliance through better and longer efficacy, designing the parenteral sustained release microspheres (MPSs) of this immune modulator is a promising approach that should be considered.

The physicochemical and structural properties of the concentrated rice bran protein (CRBP) and rice bran protein fractions – RBPF (albumin, globulin, prolamin, and glutelin) were investigated on the basis of multiple solvent extraction method. The protein fractions mainly consisted of essential amino acids except for prolamin. The amino acid composition of concentrated protein was superior to soybean protein isolation, such as valine, methionine, leucine, phenylalanine, and histidine, with similar characteristics of solubility, emulsification, and foaming. Based on the difference in amino acid composition, all these five proteins showed relatively high surface hydrophobicity more than 369.3 of prolamin. CRBP and RBPF were composed of different molecular subunits in SDS-PAGE profile. The circular dichroism spectra (CDS) in synergy showed that the primary structures of RBPF were β-protein folding and random coils with various denaturation temperatures in the range of 78.69°C for glutelin and 92.88°C for globulin. The fluorescence spectrometry assays showed that the blue shift occurred at 348 nm for globulin, while the red shift occurred for the concentrated protein, albumin, and globulin at 356.2, 348.6, and 347.0 nm, respectively. Therefore, the research presents the basic characterisation for further application of natural rice bran protein in the food industry.