Daniel Tua Purba, Jaydeep Dave and Pichayada Somboon
{"title":"Sustainable oleogel encapsulation of tilapia fish oil using protein-based cryogels: fabrication, characterization, and digestion behavior","authors":"Daniel Tua Purba, Jaydeep Dave and Pichayada Somboon","doi":"10.1039/D5FB00322A","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p >In this study, a novel cryogel-templated oleogel system was developed by incorporating sustainable tilapia fish oil (STFO-O) into hybrid protein-based cryogels composed of whey protein isolate (WPI), fish gelatin (FG), and tannic acid (TA) as a natural polyphenolic crosslinker. Unlike previous reports on single-phase cryogels or oleogels, this dual-network system synergistically combines the advantages of protein–polyphenol interactions and porous cryogel structures for improved encapsulation, stability, and targeted release of omega-3-rich oils. The tilapia visceral oil extracted using a green deep eutectic solvent–ultrasound-assisted method, exhibited high unsaturated fatty acid content (74.07%), including 31.72% polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) and 8.47% omega-3 fatty acids, including α-linolenic acid (ALA), EPA, and DHA. The optimized WPI/FG 15 : 5-TA formulation showed excellent oil absorption (42.20 ± 0.20 g g<small><sup>−1</sup></small>) and holding capacity (96.80 ± 0.69%), with a peroxide value of only 2.95 ± 0.14 meq kg<small><sup>−1</sup></small> after 8 days at 30 °C, indicating enhanced oxidative stability. FTIR analysis confirmed hydrogen bonding and successful entrapment of oil within the protein matrix. <em>In vitro</em> digestion demonstrated a controlled release profile, with free fatty acid (FFA) release limited to 62.17 ± 2.76% after 120 minutes compared to 83.61 ± 1.42% in the WPI-only control. These results validate the WPI–FG–TA cryogel–oleogel system as a promising and sustainable platform for delivering omega-3-enriched fish oils in functional food and nutraceutical applications.</p>","PeriodicalId":101198,"journal":{"name":"Sustainable Food Technology","volume":" 5","pages":" 1480-1491"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0000,"publicationDate":"2025-07-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlepdf/2025/fb/d5fb00322a?page=search","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Sustainable Food Technology","FirstCategoryId":"1085","ListUrlMain":"https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlelanding/2025/fb/d5fb00322a","RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":null,"ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"","JCRName":"","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
In this study, a novel cryogel-templated oleogel system was developed by incorporating sustainable tilapia fish oil (STFO-O) into hybrid protein-based cryogels composed of whey protein isolate (WPI), fish gelatin (FG), and tannic acid (TA) as a natural polyphenolic crosslinker. Unlike previous reports on single-phase cryogels or oleogels, this dual-network system synergistically combines the advantages of protein–polyphenol interactions and porous cryogel structures for improved encapsulation, stability, and targeted release of omega-3-rich oils. The tilapia visceral oil extracted using a green deep eutectic solvent–ultrasound-assisted method, exhibited high unsaturated fatty acid content (74.07%), including 31.72% polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) and 8.47% omega-3 fatty acids, including α-linolenic acid (ALA), EPA, and DHA. The optimized WPI/FG 15 : 5-TA formulation showed excellent oil absorption (42.20 ± 0.20 g g−1) and holding capacity (96.80 ± 0.69%), with a peroxide value of only 2.95 ± 0.14 meq kg−1 after 8 days at 30 °C, indicating enhanced oxidative stability. FTIR analysis confirmed hydrogen bonding and successful entrapment of oil within the protein matrix. In vitro digestion demonstrated a controlled release profile, with free fatty acid (FFA) release limited to 62.17 ± 2.76% after 120 minutes compared to 83.61 ± 1.42% in the WPI-only control. These results validate the WPI–FG–TA cryogel–oleogel system as a promising and sustainable platform for delivering omega-3-enriched fish oils in functional food and nutraceutical applications.