Improved uptake of anthocyanins-loaded nanoparticles based on phenolic acid-grafted zein and lecithin

: Li, Zhiying; Tian, Jinlong; Tian, Qilin; Zang, Zhihuan; Wang, Yumeng; Jiang, Qiao; Chen, Yi; Yang, Baoru; Yang, Shufang; Yang, Yiyun; Li, Bin

Publisher: Elsevier BV

: 2025

: Food Chemistry

: Food Chem

: 142235

: 466

: 0308-8146

: 1873-7072

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodchem.2024.142235

: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodchem.2024.142235

Anthocyanins (ACNs) exhibit various physiological activities but have low bioavailability. This study aimed to improve cellular uptake and permeability of ACNs by utilizing phenolic acids grafted zein and lecithin (ZLAs) as the carrier. With the highest grafting rate achieved in rosmarinic acid (RA)-zein at 39.79 ± 0.40 % using alkali treatment, the grafted zein samples were characterized through spectroscopy, NMR, and analysis of physicochemical properties. Ferulic acid (FA)-ZLAs exhibited the smallest particle size (69.72 ± 0.50 nm) and PDI value of 0.206 ± 0.012. Multi-spectroscopy indicated hydrogen bonding and hydrophobic forces were the major forces to stabilize ACNs. Moreover, carrier binding including electrostatic interaction effectively enhanced processing, thermal degradation, color, and gastrointestinal stability. In Caco-2 monolayers, FA-ZLAs significantly improved cellular transport efficiency, resulting in up to a 1.9-fold enhancement. RA-ZLAs exhibited the strongest antioxidant activity. This work proposes a feasible strategy for stabilizing ACNs and propelling their use in dietary supplements.

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This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (U21A20273 and 32202074), the National Key Research and Development Program of China (2022YFD2100803), the Liaoning “Revitalization Talents Program” Leading Talents Funding Support Project (XLYC2202023), and Zhejiang Leading Geese Project (2023C02046).