Instant gel-forming microcapsules based on micronized-κ-carrageenan for bitter taste quenching bioinspired by the...

This study proposes to construct bitter taste quenching instant gel-forming microcapsules to solve the problem of palatability of traditional solid formulations and improve medication compliance. Panax Notoginseng Saponins-olive oil-κ-carrageenan (PNS-OLI-CAR) instant gel-forming microcapsules were successfully constructed with Panax notoginseng saponins as the bitter representative drug, olive oil as the intermediate oil film, and micronized κ-carrageenan as the instant gel-forming capsule material via dry coating technology. PNS-OLI-CAR, made by PNS:OLI:micro-κ-CAR in a ratio of 1:0.025:0.6 and encapsulated for 15 min, had a good bitter taste-masking effect. Compared with PNS, the bitterness and bitter aftertaste of PNS-OLI-CAR were significantly reduced (more than 60 %). In 70 °C waters, it can be completely wetted and dispersed in water in 10 s, with excellent instant gel-forming and dispersibility. The particle size was about 40 μm, and the drug loading and encapsulation efficiency were as high as 59.0 % and 94.5 %, respectively. This study not only demonstrated that instant gel-forming microcapsules have a passion fruit seed-like biomimetic structure, but also elucidated their dual bitterness suppression mechanism involving physical shielding and electrostatic induction. Overall, this study confirmed that bitter taste quenching instant gel-forming microcapsules can be used to improve the taste of bitter drugs to enhance the medication compliance.