Regulating the physical and oxidative stabilities of camellia oil in water emulsions by interfacial engineering of intermolecular interaction between soya bean lecithin and polyphenols

The Camellia oil (CO) is a multifunctional woody oil with a high content of unsaturated fatty acids (UFAs) and active ingredients. However, it is unstable because spoilage of UFAs would occur and even generate toxic substances under the effect of heat, light, or oxygen. Additionally, the bioavailability of active ingredients is limited by their poor solubility. To address these problems, CO in water (CO/W) emulsions stabilized by soya bean lecithin (SBL)-polyphenols (PPs) (e-SBL + PPs) with different structure and amphiphilicity are constructed in this work. All the emulsions are 0.5–2 μm with PDI<0.35, and droplet viability is >92 % after 28 days. Be compared with e-SBL, the stability of e-SBL + catechin and e-SBL + gallic acid are significantly improved, while that of e-SBL + cinnamic acid and e-SBL + coumarin are reduced. During storage, the primary and secondary lipid oxidation products in e-SBL + catechin were inhibited by 26.8 % and 65.4 %. Combined the theoretical study, the intermolecular interaction of between SBL and PP is thought to play a key role in dynamic distribution of PP, thus affecting the physical and oxidative stability of emulsions. This study provides a new perspective for regulating the physical stability and lipid oxidation in CO/W emulsions through the interaction between emulsifier and antioxidant. • Soya bean lecithin-polyphenol complex was used to co-stabilize Camellia oil in water emulsions. • The addition of CT and GA could significantly improve the stability of emulsions, while CA and CM could decrease it. • Intermolecular interaction of between SBL and PP plays a key role in dynamic distribution of PP, thus affecting the physical and oxidative stability of emulsions.