We report for the first time that curcumin is successfully encapsulated into a new natural pre-formed carrier, which was derived from arthrospore cell wall particles (APs) of probiotic Geotrichum candidum LG-8 and mainly composed of beta-1,4-glucan. Vacuum infusion process was used for efficient encapsulation of curcumin. The results showed that the encapsulation efficiency and yield of APs were 36.5 ± 0.9 % and 730.6 ± 26.5 μg/g (wet basis), respectively. Compared with the other probiotic carriers such as Saccharomyces cerevisiae, it could more effectively maintain the antioxidant property and storage capacity of curcumin under high temperature conditions. Simulated digestion was conducted to study in vitro release of curcumin encapsulated in APs, and showed a maximum bioaccessibility of 65.6 ± 3.8 %. In view of low-cost culture method, simple encapsulation process and high encapsulation capacity, G. candidum arthrospores as new natural encapsulation carriers have potential superiority in the practical application in food industry.
Keywords: Arthrospore cell wall particles; Curcumin encapsulation; Geotrichum candidum; Simulated digestion; Stability.
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