**13. Probiotic bacteria**

The microencapsulation has been successfully used to improve the survival of probiotic bacteria in dairy products such as cheese. Ozer et al. [85] demonstrated that colonies of *Lactobacillus ramnosus* microencapsulated in a matrix of alginate maintained their viability over 48 h at pH 2, in comparison with free (without encapsulate) cells that were inactivated completely under the same conditions; Another example related to dairy products is the yogurt, in which Bifidobacteria are encapsulated to increase viability in this fermented beverage; Also the whey, the liquid product obtained during the preparation of the cheese can be dried by spraying for the production of whey powder and/or whey protein concentrates [14]. Bio-functional foods offer physiological health benefits and disease prevention over and above their nutritional contribution. Microencapsulation has become the recent tool used for protecting and delivering bioactives in the development of bio-functional foods. Probiotic foods are by far the largest functional food market. They provide several health benefits including immunestimulation. Viability, physiological and metabolic activity of these bio actives in a food product at the point of sale are important consideration for their efficacy, as they have to survive during shelf life of a food, transit through high acidic and alkaline conditions in the gastro-intestinal tract. Microencapsulation is an inclusion technique for entrapping a bio-functional nutrient or bio-active compound such as probiotic bacteria, folic acid and protease enzymes into a polymeric (gelled) matrix that may be coated by one or more semi-permeable polymers, by virtue of which the encapsulated substance become more stable than the free one [86].

## **14. Microencapsulation methods**

Several encapsulation processes are based on making first droplets of the active compound (in gas, liquid or powder form) and these droplets are subsequently surrounded by the carrier material in a gas or liquid phase via different methods. Excellent reviews on the encapsulation processes have been published in the last years [12-14, 87-88]. For this reason, this section will only show the most commonly used methods in microencapsulation and the steps involved through a list (see Table 5).


Adapted from Zuidam and Shimoni [12]

446 The Complex World of Polysaccharides

**13. Probiotic bacteria** 

stable than the free one [86].

**14. Microencapsulation methods** 

the steps involved through a list (see Table 5).

babies, bakery products and beverages [84].

has done to the food and pharmaceutical industry to seek alternatives to prevent their deterioration. The microencapsulation has been an alternative to avoid the deterioration of oils because it can increase the oxidative stability of these and avoid the formation of products of oxidation of high molecular weight, in addition to mask unwanted flavors and aromas. It also gives some properties such as ease of handling and mixing, dispersion, and improvement of the consistency of the product during and after processing [82]. Advances in technologies of microencapsulation and the strategies used in its production have resulted in an increasing number of successful products fortified with omega-3 in the market [83], such as: dietary supplements, dairy, snacks, infant formulas and foods for

The microencapsulation has been successfully used to improve the survival of probiotic bacteria in dairy products such as cheese. Ozer et al. [85] demonstrated that colonies of *Lactobacillus ramnosus* microencapsulated in a matrix of alginate maintained their viability over 48 h at pH 2, in comparison with free (without encapsulate) cells that were inactivated completely under the same conditions; Another example related to dairy products is the yogurt, in which Bifidobacteria are encapsulated to increase viability in this fermented beverage; Also the whey, the liquid product obtained during the preparation of the cheese can be dried by spraying for the production of whey powder and/or whey protein concentrates [14]. Bio-functional foods offer physiological health benefits and disease prevention over and above their nutritional contribution. Microencapsulation has become the recent tool used for protecting and delivering bioactives in the development of bio-functional foods. Probiotic foods are by far the largest functional food market. They provide several health benefits including immunestimulation. Viability, physiological and metabolic activity of these bio actives in a food product at the point of sale are important consideration for their efficacy, as they have to survive during shelf life of a food, transit through high acidic and alkaline conditions in the gastro-intestinal tract. Microencapsulation is an inclusion technique for entrapping a bio-functional nutrient or bio-active compound such as probiotic bacteria, folic acid and protease enzymes into a polymeric (gelled) matrix that may be coated by one or more semi-permeable polymers, by virtue of which the encapsulated substance become more

Several encapsulation processes are based on making first droplets of the active compound (in gas, liquid or powder form) and these droplets are subsequently surrounded by the carrier material in a gas or liquid phase via different methods. Excellent reviews on the encapsulation processes have been published in the last years [12-14, 87-88]. For this reason, this section will only show the most commonly used methods in microencapsulation and

**Table 5.** Overview of the most common microencapsulation processes
