GUARANA EXTRACT-PEA PROTEIN ISOLATE CONJUGATES STABILIZING O/W EMULSIONS LOADED WITH VITAMIN D3

Due to the growing demand for green and clean-label formulations, emulsions stabilized by plant-based particles have been investigated for loading bioactive compounds. In this context, conjugating plant protein with phenolic compounds from plant extracts is a promising strategy to improve the techno-functionality and healthiness of emulsion-based products. The present study aimed to (i) evaluate the performance of combining moderate heat treatment (MHT) and conjugation between guarana extract (GE) and pea protein isolate (PPI) to stabilize O/W emulsions; (ii) characterize the formulations and their holding capacity of vitamin D3 (VD) over storage for 30 days; (iii) assess the in vitro bioaccessibility of VD of the different formulations. PPI-GE conjugates produced with 0.01% (w/w) of GE stabilized emulsions and showed a slightly smaller droplet size compared to the conjugate formulations with 0.1% (w/w) of GE. Furthermore, microgel formation followed by conjugation with GE led to stabilized emulsions after 30 days of storage at 25 °C. Also, the conjugates significantly improved VD retention, ranging from 74-100%, after 30 days of storage at 25 °C under UV light. VD-loaded emulsions stabilized by PPI-GE conjugates showed higher bioaccessibility values (>65%) compared to emulsions stabilized solely by PPI (55%) and VD-incorporated in sunflower oil. Given the above, the technological modification of PPI from conjugation with GE phenolic compounds and MHT efficiently produced O/W emulsions loaded with VD, improving its bioaccessibility and tailoring a system with potential application in plant-based beverage formulations.