Preparation and eye-protecting application of lutein Pickering emulsions stabilized by tea polyphenol/cassia seeds

Lutein Pickering emulsions stabilized by tea polyphenol/cassia seeds represent a promising delivery system for enhancing the stability and bioavailability of lutein, a lipophilic antioxidant with known health benefits. This system leverages the synergistic effects of tea polyphenols and cassia seeds to form robust emulsions through Pickering stabilization and evaluate its application of blue light-induced eye damage. The Pickering emulsion exhibited favorable viscoelasticity, pH stability, and antioxidant activity. When tea polyphenols were combined with cassia seeds, the emulsion's antioxidant capacity was significantly enhanced-specifically, its ABTS and DPPH free radical scavenging rates increased by 55.63% and 32.68%, respectively. In vivo experiments demonstrated that the lutein-loaded Pickering emulsion effectively alleviated retinal damage and exhibited strong reactive oxygen species scavenging activity. These results indicate that tea polyphenol/cassia seed-stabilized lutein Pickering emulsions can effectively protect and deliver lutein, offering a dietary approach to reduce retinal damage from blue light.