Food protein-based nanotechnology: from delivery to sensing systems

Nanotechnology has transformed the conventional agriculture and food sector into an area of emerging interest in the past decade. The innovation of food protein-based nanomaterials is one of the major recent advancements of nanotechnology, which opens up a whole universe of new possibilities for the future food industry. Food proteins, as building blocks, can be designed to a plethora of sophisticated nanomaterials under the assistance of supramolecular architectures and material engineering. Herein, we present the most recent developments on the fabrication of food protein-based nanomaterials (i.e. nanoemulsions, nanoparticles, nanofibrils, nanogels, and nanosensors), including the type of proteins, the formation basis, and the emerging approaches. The potential applications of these protein nanomaterials, particularly for bioactive compound delivery and biosensing, are highlighted. The potential opportunities and challenges for food protein-based nanomaterials are also outlined.