1. Emulsion electrospinning: Fundamentals, food applications and prospects.
- Author
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Zhang, Cen, Feng, Fengqin, and Zhang, Hui
- Subjects
- *
ELECTROSPINNING , *NANOFIBERS , *FOOD packaging , *ENZYMES , *ENCAPSULATION (Catalysis) - Abstract
Abstract Background In the past decades, many natural bioactive compounds with antioxidant, immunoregulatory, antimicrobial, and anticancer activities have been successfully identified in plant and animal materials. However, due to their poor solubility, unfavorable flavor, low bioavailability and instability during food processing and storage, the development of bioactive compounds used in the food industry presents many technological challenges. Scope and approach Emulsion electrospinning is a novel and simple technique to fabricate core-shell nanofibers, and either water-in-oil (W/O) or oil-in-water (O/W) emulsions can be electrospun to directly encapsulate hydrophilic or hydrophobic compounds into core-shell fibers, respectively. This review introduces fundamentals and advantages of emulsion electrospinning as well as its food applications. The effects of different types of emulsifiers on the formation of emulsion systems and emulsion-based electrospun fibers are highlighted. Further, the existing limitations and scope for future research are discussed. Key findings and conclusions Recent studies have found that the emulsion-based electrospun nanofibers can enhance the encapsulation efficiency, stability, and bioavailability of bioactive compounds, as well as achieve targeted delivery and controlled release, thus providing new strategies to improve their barrier performance compared to conventional electrospinning and therefore facilitating the development of emulsion-based electrospun mats in the food industry. Highlights • Fundamentals and advantages of emulsion electrospinning are overviewed. • Diverse food-grade materials are appropriate for emulsion electrospinning. • Role of different types of emulsifiers in emulsion electrospinning is clarified. • Food applications of emulsion-based electrospun fibers are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2018
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