Revolutionizing gut health: advances in encapsulation strategies for probiotics and bioactive molecules

Advancements in biotechnology underscore the critical role of gastrointestinal microbiome in health and disease. Probiotic supplementation offers therapeutic potential, particularly for functional gastrointestinal disorders, which affect over 40 % of the global population and impair quality of life. Despite a rapidly growing probiotics market, many formulations suffer from poor efficacy due to challenges such as gastric survival, temperature sensitivity and poor colonization of the gut lining. Encapsulation technologies have emerged as potential solutions, offering protection for probiotics but introducing complexities related to biopolymer coatings and adhesion efficiency. Moreover, reactive oxygen species (ROS) significantly influence gut health with excess ROS contributing to dysbiosis, intestinal barrier disruption and inflammation. While dietary antioxidants offer some benefits, their rapid clearance and nonspecific biodistribution limit therapeutic efficacy. Encapsulation strategies integrating probiotics with phenolic antioxidants have demonstrated enhanced survival, adhesion, and antioxidant activity, presenting a promising avenue for gut health interventions. This review primarily aims to explore innovative approaches to encapsulated probiotic formulations, emphasizing their potential to address current limitations and improve gut health. Specifically, the review examines key areas of focus including the design and manufacturing of systems incorporating live microorganisms and bioactive molecules; evaluation of their digestion, release and bioactivity; and their in vitro and in vivo efficacy. Finally, regulatory considerations and future research directions, focused on advancing smart encapsulation strategies and novel delivery systems to enhance therapeutic efficacy and address current challenges in gut health interventions are also explored.