Binary blend of maltodextrin and whey protein outperforms gum Arabic as superior wall material for squalene encapsulation

The efficiency of high dextrose equivalent (DE) maltodextrin – whey protein isolate blend (MD-WPI) to perform as a delivery system for encapsulating squalene, a marine nutraceutical, was investigated by keeping gum Arabic (GA) as reference material. Rheological properties indicated that MD-WPI and GA based emulsions have pseudoplastic and dilatant behaviour respectively. Encapsulation efficiency of 96.50 ± 0.06% and 75.44 ± 0.09% was achieved when squalene was encapsulated using MD-WPI and GA respectively. MD-WPI based squalene has recorded the highest oxidative stability and better solubility attributes. Maximum squalene release was observed from MD-WPI coated squalene at the 4th h of digestion suggesting faster wall material dissolution. Other invitro release characteristics such as particle size, zeta potential and polydispersity index also concurred with the above findings. It is concluded that high DE maltodextrin - whey protein blend can function superior to gum Arabic as a delivery system in terms of encapsulation, physico-chemical stability and in-vitro release attributes. Overall, the better stability and solubility aspects of MD-WPI based squalene powder indicates that it can find potent application as a functional food additive.