Effect of cellulose nanofibrils on stability and digestive properties of legume protein-based emulsions

The global sustainability and health consciousness awakening have contributed to the rise of legume proteins, but the poor emulsion stability of legume proteins limits their application. Herein, cellulose nanofibers isolated from citrus peels (CNFs) were used to improve the stability of pea isolate protein, chickpea isolate protein, and soybean isolate protein emulsions. Results showed that CNFs extracted from citrus peels could improve the interfacial properties of legume proteins via non-covalent interaction. The addition of CNFs could increase interfacial tension and contact angle compared to the legume protein alone. CNFs resulted in the formation of homogeneous emulsions with smaller particle sizes as well as an increase in the viscosity of the emulsions. Meanwhile, the stability of legume protein/CNFs complex emulsions showed significant advantages over single legume protein emulsions in terms of long-term storage, centrifugation, salt ions, and high temperature. Furthermore, legume protein/CNFs emulsions have a lower rate of lipid digestion. These results revealed that CNFs have promising potential for improving legume protein emulsion stability and retarding lipolysis, which provides a theoretical basis for advancing the use of legume proteins.