The two-faced functionality of birch glucuronoxylan in an emulsion-based carrier of vitamin D3

Felix Abik, Thao Minh Ho, Mari Lehtonen, Mark Philo, Catherine Booth, Giuseppina Mandalari, Peter J. Wilde, Kirsi S. Mikkonen

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleScientificpeer-review

Abstract

Emulsions are commonly used to fortify beverages with oil-soluble nutrients. Such emulsions must be physically stable, prevent the cargo nutrient from chemical degradation, and release the nutrient at the right time during digestion. Wood hemicelluloses, with their proven capability in producing nanoemulsions and preventing oil oxidation, have the potential to facilitate such a fortification method. These hemicelluloses are unique, as the presence of residual lignin was proven essential in their functionality. However, the structural interplay between the residual lignin and the polysaccharide fraction at the oil-water interface is unknown, including their effects on the storage stability and digestibility of a loaded bioactive compound. We studied the performance of emulsions stabilized by two grades of birch glucuronoxylans (GX) as vessels for vitamin D3. Both GXs showed similar protective performance to methylcellulose regardless of the lignin content during storage and the gastric phase of digestion. The unrefined GX, which contained larger lignin moieties, delayed the release of vitamin D3 during intestinal digestion. We concluded that the interface is primarily built of a polysaccharide layer with the lignin moieties facing towards the oil phase. We have thus highlighted the potential of GX-stabilized emulsions as carriers of vitamin D3. Additionally, these results advance the understanding of lignin-polysaccharide interplay towards a rationalized strategy in biorefining of wood hemicelluloses, for which the ratio of lignin-to-polysaccharide can be adjusted during extraction and post-extraction treatments to obtain a tailor-made emulsifier for various emulsion-based products.

Original languageEnglish
Article number110442
JournalFood Hydrocolloids
Volume157
Number of pages13
ISSN0268-005X
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Dec 2024
MoE publication typeA1 Journal article-refereed

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2024 The Authors

Fields of Science

  • Emulsion stability
  • In-vitro digestion
  • Interfacial structure
  • Vitamin D3
  • Wood hemicelluloses
  • Xylans
  • 116 Chemical sciences

Cite this