Probiotics with a protective armor: New method boosts survival and gut health

A research team led by WANG Peng from the Hefei Institutes of Physical Science of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, has developed a new method for encapsulating probiotics recently. 

They used nanoparticles formed by antisolvent precipitation to protect the probiotics, and tested the probiotics in lab simulations and animal experiments to confirm their effectiveness. 

The results were published in LWT - Food Science and Technology.

Probiotics, when consumed, can help maintain a healthy balance of microorganisms in the gut, but they often struggle to survive stomach acids, bile, and other challenges in the digestive process.

In this study, the team combined two natural substances—zein (a protein from corn) and soluble soybean polysaccharides—to create a composite material that encapsulates the probiotics and shields them from environmental stress.

The results were promising: the encapsulated probiotics showed significantly higher survival rates in simulated gastrointestinal conditions and even after pasteurization, a common food preservation process. When tested in rats, the encapsulated probiotics not only survived the digestive system but also improved gut health. The rats’gut microbiota showed increased diversity and higher levels of beneficial bacteria, while harmful bacteria were reduced.

"This research could lead to more effective probiotic supplements that survive digestion and improve gut health, paving the way for better functional foods," said Dr. CHENG Cheng, a member of the team. 

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