Amphiphilic lipids for food functionality

Amphiphilic lipids are essential biomolecules, critical components in nature's functional materials, and crucial nutrients in food. Being sustainable, biocompatible, and biodegradable with versatile structural properties, they have great potential as functional building blocks for innovative food materials. They can tailor factors including texture, mouthfeel, appearance, and nutrient delivery. Their structural analysis from the angstrom to the micrometer range lies at the core of the functional material design and is fundamental for their further biological understanding.

We discuss recent advances in colloidal structure formation and challenges in characterizing structures and dynamics in lipid-based materials on the microstructural level. We provide examples of how lipid self-assemblies, particularly lyotropic liquid crystalline structures, can enhance food materials. The interdisciplinary development of this growing research field helps explore new functionalities for food applications.