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Pokorski P.♦, Piechowiak T.♦, Szpicer A.♦, Strojny-Cieślak B.♦, Pruchniewski M.♦, Zakrzewska A., Aktaş H.♦, Zhang S.♦, He R.♦, Kurek M. A.♦, Edible insect proteins – carrageenans microspheres for β-sitosterol encapsulation: Oxidative stability and in vitro bioaccessibility evaluation,
Food Chemistry, ISSN: 0308-8146, DOI: 10.1016/j.foodchem.2026.149618, Vol.518, pp.149618-1-13, 2026 Abstract:
β-sitosterol is the most abundant phytosterol, but it exhibits low stability and bioaccessibility, requiring effective delivery systems. In this study, nine β-sitosterol-loaded microspheres were produced using edible insect proteins (T. molitor, A. domesticus, L. migratoria) and κ-, ι-, or λ-carrageenan via complex coacervation and spray-drying. The resulting spherical microcapsules (<15 μm) showed strong protein-polysaccharide interactions, particularly with κ- and ι-carrageenan, which induced β-sheet-rich structures and improved stability. λ-carrageenan produced more flexible, α-helical microspheres with lower oxidative stability. Lipid peroxidation was inhibited by up to 95%, although λ-CG variants exhibited 2–3× higher oxidation. HS-SPME/GC–MS confirmed the suppression of volatile oxidation markers. β-sitosterol retention reached 66–95%, largely depending on carrageenan type. In vitro digestion showed low oral (9–15%) and moderate gastric release (28–39%), with the highest release in the intestinal phase (38–54%), resulting in overall bioaccessibility exceeding 85% for all formulations. Keywords:
Edible insect protein, Carrageenans, β-Sitosterol, Microencapsulation, Oxidative stability, Bioaccessibility Affiliations:
| Pokorski P. | - | other affiliation | | Piechowiak T. | - | other affiliation | | Szpicer A. | - | other affiliation | | Strojny-Cieślak B. | - | other affiliation | | Pruchniewski M. | - | other affiliation | | Zakrzewska A. | - | IPPT PAN | | Aktaş H. | - | other affiliation | | Zhang S. | - | other affiliation | | He R. | - | other affiliation | | Kurek M. A. | - | other affiliation |
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