Hydrogel Coencapsulation Provides Synergistic Protection of Lactobacillus casei and Tocotrienol-Enriched Flaxseed Oil during In Vitro Digestion and Storage

This study aimed to co-encapsulate Lactobacillus casei and tocotrienol-enriched flaxseed oil in calcium alginate-carboxymethyl cellulose (CA-CMC) hydrogel beads. Encapsulation efficiencies of oil and L. casei were approximately 88 and 84%, respectively, in co-encapsulated CA-CMC beads having 1.74 mm diameter. Higher swelling and oil release were observed in intestinal fluid than in gastric fluid. Higher viability of L. casei was observed in the co-encapsulated beads than the single encapsulated beads of L. casei during in vitro digestion and storage. Higher oxidative stability of oil was found in the co-encapsulated beads than the single encapsulated beads of oil during storage. Thus, this study demonstrated a synergistic interaction between L. casei and tocotrienol-enriched flaxseed oil in the co-encapsuled CA-CMC beads during in vitro digestion and storage. The co-encapsulated CA-CMC beads have good potential to simultaneously deliver the health benefits of these three bioactives when incorporated into a food system.