Recipient Organization
TENNESSEE STATE UNIVERSITY
3500 JOHN A. MERRITT BLVD
NASHVILLE,TN 37209
Performing Department
Agricultural and Environmental Sciences
Non Technical Summary
Malnutrition and associated health problems are major factors slowing down the social and economic development worldwide. Food-based interventions, including micronutrient-fortified and functional foods, are highly cost-effective in tackling the problems. To ensure the safe and effective delivery of micronutrients and nutraceuticals through food production, distribution, and consumption, innovative technologies are required. Based on a microencapsulation-based technology platform developed previously, I propose to explore the potential use of soluble dietary fibers such as beta-glucan, inulin, as well as oilseed protein isolates as coating materials for encapsulating selected vitamins and minerals, e.g., vitamin A, folic acid, iron and zinc. The delivery systems will be examined in food applications for designing value-added food products with functions in weight control/management, particularly for obese and diabetic populations, based on the desirable functionalities of dietary fibers and plant proteins in weight control/management. Successful delivery systems applicable to food fortification, particularly in meat, bakery, and beverage products, are expected to be readily scalable and commercialized. Since there is an abundance of cereal grains, legume and oilseed crops in North America, the development of value-added products utilizing these crops, as introduced in the later section of the proposal, should have far-reaching potentials to benefit the agri-food sector, consumers, and industrial collaborators.
Animal Health Component
(N/A)
Research Effort Categories
Basic
(N/A)
Applied
(N/A)
Developmental
(N/A)
Goals / Objectives
The overall objective of the proposed research is to develop "engineered" foods or food ingredients containing selected micronutrients and nutraceuticals in stable and bioavailable forms to achieve enhanced nutritional values, including disease prevention. The specific aims include: 1.To examine the feasibility of potential use of dietary fibres such as beta-glucan and inulin extracted from cereals and legumes, and plant protein isolates such as extracted from legumes (peas and beans) and oilseeds, as coating materials for encapsulating selected vitamins and minerals at different particle sizes; the scientific hypothesis associated in this part of work would be "the selected dietary fibres and plant protein isolates have desirable engineering properties, such as film-forming, emulsification, and controlled release properties, for microencapsulating other minor active ingredients for food applications". 2.To examine the food applications of the developed delivery systems, leading to functional foods for obese and diabetic populations, based on the clinically proven weight control/management effects of dietary fibres and plant proteins; the specific functional foods of interest at this moment include breakfast cereals, pasta, ready-to-eat snacks, and enriched beverages. 3.To assess the thus developed ingredient delivery systems and the functional food products on their physical, chemical, nutritional, and organoleptic properties; 4.Based on the above-mentioned assessments, to optimize the formulations and processes for better microencapsulated products, leading to commercial viable, scalable formulations and/or processes.
Project Methods
The extrusion-based technology platform developed in my earlier study enables me to produce microencapsulated particles ranging in size from 500 microns to 10 mm. Other unit operations that I had explored could form smaller particles on a 100-500 micron scale by fluidized-bed agglomeration and on a 1-100 micron scale by spray drying and freeze drying. Chemical methods can produce even smaller particles, e.g., nano- or micro-emulsions and microfluidic techniques can lead to particles at nano scales. Appropriate combinations of these physical and chemical methods will enable me to produce microencapsulated particles covering a broad size range for effective delivery of active ingredients in food applications. I will first use chemical method-based microencapsulation techniques, such as gelation, emulsions, or microemulsions, to form nano- or sub-micron particles carrying the selected active ingredients in a liquid phase. After appropriate drying (spray or freeze drying), the active ingredients will be converted to microencapsulated forms as free-flowing powders with a particle size of 1-100 micron. These microparticles, either in the pre-drying liquid phase or in the dried powder, can be incorporated into agglomeration processes using extrusion or fluidized-bed techniques to produce bigger particles ranging from 100 micron to several millimeters in size. The agglomerates thus formed can be further over-coated using rotating pan/drum coater to achieve desired physical/organoleptic properties and chemical stability. The microparticles stabilized in each of the processing stages can be used for various food applications depending on the end use of the food systems. Specific research approaches include: 1.Extraction & characterization of soluble dietary fibres, protein isolates, and phyto-antioxidants from locally produced crops, such as pigeon peas and sweet potatoes; 2.Utilization of legume/pulse flours (e.g., from pigeon peas and soy beans) for development of extruded/processed foods, including pasta, snack foods, and breakfast cereals; 3.Utilization of soluble dietary fibres and protein isolates as building blocks in formulating nano- or micro-scale delivery systems; i.through drum/disc coating and fluidized-bed coating process ii.through extrusion and fluidized-bed agglomeration process iii.through spray drying process 4.Investigation of chemical methods of microemulsions or through microfluidics techniques for designing delivery systems of fat-soluble vitamins and phyto-antioxidants; 5.Investigation of alginate-based controlled internal gelation as a delivery vehicle; 6.Investigation of zinc oxide as a nutrient/mineral source as well as a whitening agent for food applications; 7.Assessment of physical, chemical, nutritional, and organoleptic properties of the delivery systems and end food products developed through above processes.