Different oligosaccharides and sodium caseinate glycosylated conjugates for the microencapsulation of Lactobacillus fermentum to improve stability and cholesterol-lowering activity.

2025-12
International journal of biological macromolecules 334

PubMed: 41271046
DOI: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2025.149167

Study Design

Methods: develop microcapsules using sodium caseinate (NaCas)-oligosaccharides (OS) Maillard reaction conjugates (MRCs) to enhance the stability of Lactobacillus fermentum Q11 (LfQ11) in gastrointestinal fluids and food processing environments

Animal Study

In this study, we aimed to develop microcapsules using sodium caseinate (NaCas)-oligosaccharides (OS) Maillard reaction conjugates (MRCs) to enhance the stability of Lactobacillus fermentum Q11 (LfQ11) in gastrointestinal fluids and food processing environments. Xylooligosaccharide (XOS), fructooligosaccharide (FOS), and inulin (INU) were conjugated with NaCas via the Maillard reaction to form MRCs for the microencapsulation of LfQ11. The characterization revealed that NaCas-XOS3h exhibited the highest grafting degree (24.97 %) and superior emulsifying activity, while NaCas-INU4h demonstrated enhanced prebiotic activity. Characterization of the microcapsules indicated that LfQ11@NaCas-XOS, LfQ11@NaCas-FOS, and LfQ11@NaCas-INU achieved high encapsulation efficiency (above 90 %) and were stabilized by hydrophobic interactions. Moreover, LfQ11@NaCas-XOS maintained higher viability than free LfQ11 after exposure to gastrointestinal fluids (82.46 %), heat stress at 70 °C (3.95 Log CFU/mL), and storage at 25 °C for 28 days (7.42 Log CFU/mL) than other microcapsules. All three MRCs-based microcapsules provided enhanced protection against ionic stress and acidic stress. Furthermore, all microcapsules exhibited low cytotoxicity and excellent biocompatibility. Notably, LfQ11@NaCas-XOS significantly reduced cholesterol levels in RAW264.7 foam cells more effectively than other treatments. These findings offer valuable insights into the application of different OS-protein conjugates as microencapsulated wall materials and the development of probiotic agents with cholesterol-lowering functions.

Research Insights

Supplement	Dose	Health Outcome	Effect Type	Effect Size	Source
Lactobacillus fermentum	—	Improved Cholesterol Levels	Beneficial	Moderate	View source LfQ11@NaCas-XOS significantly reduced cholesterol levels in RAW264.7 foam cells more effectively than other treatments.
Lactobacillus fermentum	—	Improved Gastrointestinal Survival	Beneficial	Large	View source LfQ11@NaCas-XOS maintained higher viability than free LfQ11 after exposure to gastrointestinal fluids (82.46%).