Bioaccessibility of β-Lactoglobulin Nanoemulsions Containing Coenzyme Q10: Impact of Droplet Size on the Bioaccessibility of Coenzyme Q10.

The aims of this research were to examine the effect of heating temperature (65, 75, and 85℃) and CaCl₂ concentration level (3, 4, and 5 mM) on the physicochemical properties of β-lactoglobulin (β-lg) nanoemulsions (NEs) and to study how the droplet size of NEs affects the bioaccessibility (BA) of coenzyme Q₁₀ (CoQ₁₀). The droplet size of NEs and BA of CoQ₁₀ was assessed by particle size analyzer and UV-Vis spectrophotometer, respectively. An increase in heating temperature and CaCl₂ concentration level resulted in a significant (p<0.05) increase in the droplet size of NEs while there were no significant differences in polydispersity index and zeta-potential of NEs. When NEs containing CoQ₁₀ were incubated in simulated small intestinal phases, an increase in the droplet size and polydispersity index of NEs was observed. This indicated that NEs were not stable in small intestine and digestion of NEs occurred. As heating temperature and CaCl₂ concentration level were decreased, a significant (p<0.05) increase in BA of CoQ₁₀ was observed. There was a significant (p<0.05) increase in BA of CoQ₁₀ with a decrease in the droplet size of NEs. In conclusion, heating temperature and CaCl₂ concentration level were key-parameters affecting the initial droplet size of NEs and BA of CoQ₁₀ was negatively correlated with initial droplet size of NEs.