Interfacial-Bulk Synergistic Stabilization of Dual-Network Emulsion Gels by Protein-Polysaccharide Ternary Biopolymer...

Plant-based emulsion gels represent sustainable, biocompatible soft materials with transformative potential in food, biomedicine, and advanced manufacturing. However, a long-standing bottleneck persists in simultaneously achieving long-term colloidal stability and robust mechanical properties using exclusively natural biopolymers, severely limiting their practical deployment. Herein, we report an interfacial-bulk synergistic stabilization strategy by constructing a soy protein isolate (SPI)-konjac glucomannan (KGM)-κ-carrageenan (KC) ternary biopolymer system. We systematically elucidate that SPI dominates interfacial adsorption to form elastic interfacial films, while KGM-KC complexes construct a physically crosslinked bulk network to enhance viscosity and steric hindrance, enabling collaborative stabilization at both interface and bulk phases. Leveraging this synergy, stable high internal phase emulsions are readily fabricated. Furthermore, transglutaminase-induced covalent crosslinking of SPI interpenetrates with the KGM-KC physical network, yielding a robust dual-crosslinked emulsion gel with significantly enhanced mechanical strength, water-holding capacity, and freeze-thaw stability. Notably, the optimized gels exhibit excellent 3D printability with high shape fidelity, demonstrating great potential for personalized food manufacturing and bioactive delivery. This work provides fundamental insights into protein-polysaccharide synergistic interactions and establishes an effective strategy for engineering high-performance all-natural soft materials.