Zein Particles Stabilized Water-in-Water Emulsion as a Vehicle for Hydrophilic Bioactive Compound Loading of Riboflavin

Vitamins and flavonoids are two kinds of essential trace bioactives which are prone to photodegradation during food processing and storage. In this study, a particle stabilized water-in-water (W/W) emulsion system composed of soy protein isolate (SPI) and guar gum (GG) was applied in loading riboflavin. Based on the significant binding affinity differences of SPI ( = 1.11 × 10 L mol ) and GG ( = 9.00 × 10 L mol ) to riboflavin, this hydrophilic and light-sensitive bioactive compound was loaded in SPI-rich droplets. Confocal images indicated that a stable microstructure of SPI-rich droplets suspended in GG-rich continuous phase was successfully constructed through manipulating the proportion of the two polymeric components and using zein-based particles (ZPs) as stabilizers. These negatively charged particles modified by pectin with a hydrodynamic diameter of 533 ± 5.7 nm were able to adsorb at the SPI/GG interface, and subsequently stabilized the SPI-in-GG emulsion. Fluorescence spectra of riboflavin suggested that the formation of such W/W emulsion could effectively delay the photodegradation of riboflavin during an 8 h ultraviolet (UV) irradiation. And its color was maintained to a maximum extent. Therefore, this structured W/W emulsion could be a desired architecture for delivering light-sensitive cargo.