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Food Gels: Fabrication and Their Applications as Functional Delivery Systems

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A special issue of Foods (ISSN 2304-8158). This special issue belongs to the section "Food Physics and (Bio)Chemistry".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 October 2022) | Viewed by 12180

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Prof. Dr. Jie Xiao

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Guest Editor

Colleage of Food Science, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, China
Interests: food gels; emulsions; functional foods; delivery systems

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Gels, in the basic form of hydrogel, oleogel, emulsion gel and/or bigel, have been widely utilized in food formulations for improving quality attributes. The formation of gel involves the association of randomly dispersed gelling agents to form a three-dimensional network that contains a huge amount of water/oil in the interstices, and three major gelation mechanisms widely acknowledged are ionotropic gelation, cold-set gelation and heat-set gelation. Various fabrication methods are available for different matrix materials (e.g., heat treatment, enzyme treatment, acidification and addition of ions for protein-based emulsion gels and cold-set and addition of ions for polysaccharide-based emulsion gels). Structural features of gels in terms of mesh size, degree of crosslinking, swelling ability, stimuli sensitiveness and the rate of degradation can, thus, be tuned by matrix materials as well as by the fabrication conditions. Their impacts on the textural, rheological and time-delayed digestive behaviours of gel-based products endow their diverse applications in reduced fat foods, oral sensation regulation, encapsulation and delivery of bioactive ingredients, etc. In depth research studies conducted towards exploring new sources of gel martials, novel gelation mechanisms, digestive profiles and specific structural-functional relationships are highly demanded in order to make full use of their precise control features over the textural, sensory, delivery and nutritional properties in food products.

Prof. Dr. Jie Xiao
Guest Editor

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Keywords

gelator and gelation mechanisms
fabrication and characterization
structure–property relationships
gel-based delivery systems
digestive profile
sensory control

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

16 pages, 4926 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Synthesis, Characterization, and Protein-Release Properties of Hydrogels Composed of Chitosan-Zingiber offcinale Polysaccharide

by Yongshuai Jing, Yameng Zhang, Wenjing Cheng, Mingsong Li, Beibei Hu, Yuguang Zheng, Danshen Zhang and Lanfang Wu

Foods 2022, 11(18), 2747; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/foods11182747 - 07 Sep 2022

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1522

Abstract

Most proteins given orally have low bioavailability and are easily eliminated by rapid metabolism in vivo. In order to immobilize the drug at the site of administration and delay its release, a natural, gentle release system was designed. In this study, a heteropolysaccharide (ZOP) was isolated from Zingiber officinale using an ultrasonic assisted extraction method. ZOP Ara = 1.97: 1.15: 94.33: 1.48: 1.07. The ZOP/Chitosan (CS) composite hydrogel was synthesized using epichlorohydrin (ECH) as a cross-linking agent. The structure, morphology, and water-holding capacity of the composite hydrogel were characterized. The data showed that the addition of ZOP improved the hardness and water-holding capacity of the material. A swelling ratio test showed that the prepared hydrogel was sensitive to pH and ionic strength. In addition, the degradation rate of the hydrogel in a phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) solution with a pH value of 1.2 was higher than that in PBS with pH value of 7.4. Similarly, the release kinetics of Bovine serum albumin (BSA) showed higher release in an acidic system by the hydrogel composed of ZOP/CS. The hydrogel prepared by this study provided a good microenvironment for protein delivery. In summary, this composite polysaccharide hydrogel is a promising protein-drug-delivery material. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Food Gels: Fabrication and Their Applications as Functional Delivery Systems)

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16 pages, 14507 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Physical and 3D Printing Properties of Arrowroot Starch Gels

by Meiling Xu, Qiaoru Dong, Guiying Huang, Ya Zhang, Xuanxuan Lu, Jiaduo Zhang, Kun Zhang and Qingrong Huang

Foods 2022, 11(14), 2140; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/foods11142140 - 19 Jul 2022

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 2012

Abstract

This paper aims to investigate the physical and 3D printing properties of arrowroot starch (AS), a natural biopolymer with many potential health benefits. Scanning electron microscopy images showed that AS granules had mixed spherical and elongated geometries, with average sizes of 10.5 ± 2.5 μm. The molecular weight of AS measured by gel permeation chromatography (GPC) was 3.24 × 10⁷ g/mol, and the amylose/amylopectin ratio of AS was approximately 4:11. AS has an A-type crystal structure, with a gelatinization temperature of 71.8 ± 0.2 °C. The overlap concentration (C*) of AS in aqueous solutions was 0.42% (w/v). Temperature-dependent dynamic rheological analyses of 10% to 30% (w/v) AS fluids showed that the storage modulus (G’) reached the maximum values around the gelatinization temperatures, while the yield stress (τ_y) and flow stress (τ_f) values all increased with the increase in AS concentration. The printing accuracy of AS gels was found to be associated with the interplay between the G’ values and the restorability after extrusion, determined by the three-interval thixotropy tests (3ITT). The optimum 3D printing condition occurred at 20% (w/v) AS, the nozzle diameter of 0.60 mm, the printing speed of 100 mm/s and the extrusion speed of 100 mm/s. Our research provides a promising biopolymer to be used in the design of novel personalized functional foods. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Food Gels: Fabrication and Their Applications as Functional Delivery Systems)

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15 pages, 3431 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Regulation Effects of Beeswax in the Intermediate Oil Phase on the Stability, Oral Sensation and Flavor Release Properties of Pickering Double Emulsions

by Meimiao Chen, Abdullah, Wenbo Wang and Jie Xiao

Foods 2022, 11(7), 1039; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/foods11071039 - 02 Apr 2022

Cited by 17 | Viewed by 2526

Abstract

Double emulsions (W/O/W) with compartmentalized structures have attracted a lot of research interests due to their diverse applications in the food industry. Herein, oil phase of double emulsions was gelled with beeswax (BW), and the effects of BW mass ratios (0–8.0%) on the stability, oral sensation, and flavor release profile of the emulsions were investigated. Rheological tests revealed that the mechanical properties of double emulsions were dependent on the mass ratio of BW. With the increase in BW content, double emulsions showed a higher resistance against deformation, and lower friction coefficient with a smoother mouthfeel. Turbiscan analysis showed that the addition of BW improved the stability of double emulsions during a 14 days’ storage, under freeze–thawed, and osmotic pressure conditions, but it did not improve the heating stability of double emulsions. The addition of BW contributed to lower air-emulsion partition coefficients of flavor (2,3-diacetyl) compared to those without the addition of BW at 20 °C and 37 °C, respectively. Furthermore, the addition of BW and its mass ratio significantly altered the flavor release behavior during the open-bottle storage of double emulsions. The response value of 0% BW dropped sharply on the first day of opening storage, showing a burst release behavior. While a slow and sustained release behavior was observed in double emulsions with 8.0% BW. In conclusion, gelation of the intermediate oil phase of double emulsions significantly enhanced the stability of double emulsions with tunable oral sensation and flavor release by varying the mass ratio of beeswax. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Food Gels: Fabrication and Their Applications as Functional Delivery Systems)

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15 pages, 4768 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Effect and Mechanism of Acid-Induced Soy Protein Isolate Gels as Influenced by Cellulose Nanocrystals and Microcrystalline Cellulose

by Xueqi Jin, Ruijing Qu, Yong Wang, Dong Li and Lijun Wang

Foods 2022, 11(3), 461; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/foods11030461 - 03 Feb 2022

Cited by 15 | Viewed by 2522

Abstract

The effects of cellulose nanocrystals (CNC) and microcrystalline cellulose (MCC) on the gel properties and microstructure of glucono-δ-lactone-induced soy protein isolate (SPI) gels were investigated. The water-holding capacity, gel strength, and viscoelastic modulus of CNC–SPI gels were positively associated with CNC concentration from 0 to 0.75% (w/v). In contrast, MCC–SPI gels exhibited decreased water-holding capacity, gel strength, and viscoelastic modulus. All composite gels displayed high frequency dependence and the typical type I (strain thinning) network behavior. Changes in viscoelasticity under large strain were correlated with differences in the microstructure of SPI composite gels. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM) showed that CNC were more evenly and steadily distributed in the protein matrix and formed a compact network structure. In contrast, MCC–SPI gels exhibited a discontinued and rough gel network with some large aggregates and pores, in which MCC was randomly entrapped. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and molecular forces results revealed that no new chemical bonds were formed in the gelation process and that the disulfide bond was of crucial importance in the gel system. With the addition of CNC, electrostatic interactions, hydrophobic interactions, and hydrogen bonds in the SPI gel network were significantly strengthened. However, the incorporation of MCC might obstruct the connection of the protein network. It is concluded that both cellulose type and concentration affect gelling properties. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Food Gels: Fabrication and Their Applications as Functional Delivery Systems)

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13 pages, 25589 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Morphology and Rheology of a Cool-Gel (Protein) Blended with a Thermo-Gel (Hydroxypropyl Methylcellulose)

by Zhili Ji, Long Yu, Qingfei Duan, Song Miao, Hongsheng Liu, Wangyang Shen and Weiping Jin

Foods 2022, 11(1), 128; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/foods11010128 - 05 Jan 2022

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 2732

Abstract

This study investigates the morphological and rheological properties of blended gelatin (GA; a cooling-induced gel (cool-gel)) and hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC; a heating-induced gel (thermo-gel)) systems using a fluorescence microscope, small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS), and a rheometer. The results clearly indicate that the two biopolymers are immiscible and have low compatibility. Moreover, the rheological behavior and morphology of the GA/HPMC blends significantly depend on the blending ratio and concentration. Higher polysaccharide contents decrease the gelling temperature and improve the gel viscoelasticity character of GA/HPMC blended gels. The SAXS results reveal that the correlation length (ξ) of the blended gels decreases from 5.16 to 1.89 nm as the HPMC concentration increases from 1 to 6%, which suggests that much denser networks are formed in blended gels with higher HPMC concentrations. Overall, the data reported herein indicate that the gel properties of gelatin can be enhanced by blending with a heating-induced gel. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Food Gels: Fabrication and Their Applications as Functional Delivery Systems)

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