Recent trends in the application of protein electrospun fibers for loading food bioactive compounds

Seid Reza Falsafi; Fuat Topuz; Zahra Esfandiari; Asli Can Karaca; Seid Mahdi Jafari; Hadis Rostamabadi

doi:10.1016/j.fochx.2023.100922

Recent trends in the application of protein electrospun fibers for loading food bioactive compounds

Food Chem X. 2023 Oct 6:20:100922. doi: 10.1016/j.fochx.2023.100922. eCollection 2023 Dec 30.

Authors

Seid Reza Falsafi¹, Fuat Topuz², Zahra Esfandiari³, Asli Can Karaca⁴, Seid Mahdi Jafari⁵, Hadis Rostamabadi⁶

Affiliations

¹ Safiabad Agricultural Research and Education and Natural Resources Center, Agricultural Research, Education and Extension Organization (AREEO), Dezful P.O. Box 333, Iran.
² Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science and Letters, Istanbul Technical University, Sariyer, 34469 Istanbul, Turkey.
³ Nutrition and Food Security Research Center, Department of Food Science and Technology, School of Nutrition and Food Science, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, P.O. Box: 81746-73461, Isfahan, Iran.
⁴ Department of Food Engineering, Faculty of Chemical and Metallurgical Engineering, Istanbul Technical University, 34469 Istanbul, Turkey.
⁵ Department of Food Materials and Process Design Engineering, Gorgan University of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, Gorgan, Iran.
⁶ Nutrition and Food Security Research Center, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan 81746-73461, Iran.

Abstract

Electrospun fibers (EFs) have emerged as promising one-dimensional materials for a myriad of research/commercial applications due to their outstanding structural and physicochemical features. Polymers of either synthetic or natural precursors are applied to design EFs as carriers for bioactive compounds. For engineering food systems, it is crucial to exploit polymers characterized by non-toxicity, non-immunogenicity, biocompatibility, slow/controllable biodegradability, and structural integrity. The unique attributes of protein-based biomaterials endow a wide diversity of desirable features to EFs for meeting the requirements of advanced food/biomedical applications. In this review paper, after an overview on electrospinning, different protein materials (plant- and animal-based) as biodegradable/biocompatible building blocks for designing EFs will be highlighted. The potential application of protein-based EFs in loading bioactive compounds with the intention to inspire interests in both academia and industry will be summarized. This review concludes with a discussion of prevailing challenges in using protein EFs for the bioactive vehicle development.

Keywords: Bioactive compounds; Electrospinning; Electrospun fibers; Encapsulation; Protein-based carriers; Proteins.

Publication types

Review