New Trends in the Microencapsulation of Functional Fatty Acid-Rich Oils Using Transglutaminase Catalyzed Crosslinking

Preparing stable protein-based microcapsules containing functional fatty acids and oils for food applications has been a big challenge. However, recent advances with transglutaminase (TGase) enzyme as an effective protein cross-linker could provide workable solutions for the encapsulation of omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids without compromising their targeted release and their biological and physicochemical characteristics. The recent and available literature related to the microencapsulation techniques, physical and oxidative properties, and core retention and release mechanisms of TGase-crosslinked microcapsules entrapping edible oils were reviewed. The effects of factors involved in microencapsulation processes, on the efficiency and quality of the produced innovative microcapsules were also discussed and highlighted. A brief focus has been finally addressed to new insights and additional knowledge on micro- and nanoencapsulation of lipophilic food-grade ingredients by TGase-induced gelation. Two dominant microencapsulation methods for fish, vegetable, and essential oils by TGase-crosslinking are complex coacervation and emulsion-based spray drying. The developed spherical particles (<100 μm) with some wrinkles and smooth surfaces showed an excellent encapsulation efficiency and yield. A negligible release rate and a substantial retention level can result for different lipid-based cores covered by TGase-crosslinked proteins during the oral digestion and storage. A significant structural, thermal and oxidative stability for edible oils-loaded microcapsules in the presence of TGase can be also obtained.