Spray Drying for Improved Viability of Probiotics

Electrospray drying of anaerobic bacteria into a stable powder for animal feed applications, using low heat and controlled atmosphere conditions to preserve viability and stability of the microorganisms. The method involves preparing a bacterial culture, forming a slurry with a carrier, applying an electrostatic charge, atomizing the slurry, and drying the droplets in a controlled atmosphere chamber. The resulting powder contains encapsulated bacteria with less than 15% moisture content, suitable for use in animal feed to prevent lactic acidosis and promote digestive health.

Source

Rapid temperature-controlled drying of particles using a novel atomization system that enables the simultaneous mixing and dehydration of particles at lower temperatures than conventional methods. The system comprises a nozzle device with three channels: an inner channel, a middle annular channel, and an outer annular channel. The middle annular channel features a gap width sufficient to atomize liquid suspensions, while the outer annular channel provides additional drying gas flow. The system operates at temperatures between 15°C and 35°C, with controlled drying gas flow rates and precise temperature control. This approach enables the formation of dry particle aerosols with reduced particle aggregation and minimal thermal damage, while maintaining high biological activity and therapeutic efficacy.

Source

Spray-dried biotherapeutic matrix compositions comprising a bacterial preparation, designed for direct inhalation delivery, offer a novel approach to treating respiratory diseases. The compositions contain a matrix of biotherapeutic constituents, including bacterial preparations, that can be produced through spray drying. The matrix composition is formulated for inhalation delivery, with the bacterial preparation maintaining viability and efficacy during the inhalation process. The compositions can be used in dry powder inhalers (DPIs) and metered dose inhalers (MDIs), providing a reliable and efficient delivery method for biotherapeutics.

Source

Probiotics have gained significant attention owing to their roles in regulating human health. Recently, spray drying has been considered as a promising technique to produce probiotic powders due to its advantages of high efficiency, cost-saving, and good powder properties. However, the severe environmental conditions from drying and digestion can significantly reduce cell viability, resulting in poor bioaccessibility and bioavailability of live cells. Therefore, there is a need to develop effective targeted delivery systems using spray drying to protect bacteria and to maintain their physiological functions in the targeted sites. This review highlights recent studies about spray-dried targeted delivery vehicles for probiotics, focusing on key strategies to protect bacteria when encountering external stresses, the formation mechanism of particles, the targeted release and colonization mechanisms of live cells in particles with different structures. Advances in the targeted delivery of live probiotics via spray-dried vehicles are still in their early stages. To increase the possibiliti... Read More

Source

Nano-scale probiotic microcapsules prepared by low-temperature ultrasonic atomization technology, comprising a method of injecting a low-temperature treated probiotic suspension into a surface acoustic wave atomizer to produce nano-droplets encapsulating the probiotics. The microcapsules exhibit improved bioavailability, stability, and targeting properties, enabling precise delivery of probiotics to the gastrointestinal tract and lungs for enhanced therapeutic effects.

Source

Shelf-stable, heat-treated beverage containing encapsulated probiotics that can be stored at ambient temperatures for extended periods without spoilage. The beverage contains microparticles with live probiotics encapsulated within. The microparticles are made by coating a core of sub-microparticles containing the probiotics with denatured protein using a fluidized bed process. This prevents leakage and degradation of the probiotics during heat treatment and storage. The encapsulated probiotics survive UHT processing and maintain viability for 24 months at room temperature.

Source

Microencapsulated microbial cultures with enhanced storage stability at elevated temperatures, comprising a microbial culture entrapped in a coacervate comprising a non-homogeneous encapsulation matrix with a high ratio of matrix material to core material, wherein the matrix material includes carbohydrates, proteins, and antioxidants. The microencapsulated cultures exhibit preserved viability over extended periods of storage at temperatures up to 37°C, enabling applications in products where refrigerated storage is not feasible.

Source

A probiotic granule comprising a core of probiotic bacteria coated with a single continuous layer of a hydrophobic solid dispersion containing a water-soluble polymeric stress absorber. The stress absorber is dispersed within a hydrophobic solid component such as fat, wax, or fatty acid, and provides mechanical protection and controlled dissolution of the granule. The granule enables prolonged survival of the probiotics during storage and passage through the gastrointestinal tract, and can be used in a variety of food products.

Source

Encapsulating probiotics using calcium carbonate to improve intestinal reach, stability during freeze-drying, and storage stability. The method involves encapsulating probiotics with calcium carbonate, freeze-drying the encapsulated probiotics, and then powdering the resulting calcium carbonate-encapsulated probiotic powder. The calcium carbonate reacts with bile in the intestines, converting to hydroxyapatite, aiding probiotic survival. The encapsulation prevents degradation during stomach acid and freeze-drying.

Source

A probiotic microcapsule preparation method that produces uniform microcapsules with controlled particle size, high encapsulation efficiency, and resistance to gastric acids and high temperatures. The method involves coating probiotic bacteria with a hydroxypropyl methylcellulose solution containing a coating material, followed by lyophilization. The resulting microcapsules exhibit improved survival ratios and stability compared to conventional methods.

Source

A method for producing crosslinked dried microparticles containing encapsulated live microorganisms via a single-step spray-drying process. The method involves combining a microbial solution containing a crosslinkable polymer, protective agents, and microorganisms with a crosslinking agent solution, and then subjecting the combined solutions to spray-drying using a co-axial nozzle. The resulting microparticles have a crosslinked polymeric matrix that protects the encapsulated microorganisms from environmental stressors and acidic conditions, enabling targeted delivery to the human intestine.

Source

This work proposes a novel drying method suitable for probiotic bacteria, called flash freeze-drying (FFD), which consists of a cyclic variation in pressure (up-down) in a very short time and is applied during primary drying. The effects of three FFD temperatures (25 C, 15 C, and 3 C) on the bacterial survival and water activity of Lactobacillus acidophilus LA5 (LA), previously microencapsulated with calcium alginate and chitosan, were evaluated. The total process time was 900 min, which is 68.75% less than the usual freeze-drying (FD) time of 2880 min. After FFD, LA treated at 25 C reached a cell viability of 89.94%, which is 2.74% higher than that obtained by FD, as well as a water activity of 0.0522, which is 55% significantly lower than that observed using FD. Likewise, this freezing temperature showed 64.72% cell viability at the end of storage (28 days/20 C/34% relative humidity). With the experimental data, a useful mathematical model was developed to obtain the optimal FFD operating parameters to achieve the target water content in the final drying.

Source

A dry composition of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) with enhanced storage stability, comprising LAB cells and a synergistic stabilizer blend of oligofructans, maltodextrin, inulin, and/or pea fiber. The stabilizer blend provides cryoprotection, lyoprotection, and storage stability to the LAB cells, enabling long-term viability and shelf life. The composition is suitable for use in infant formulas, dietary supplements, and other food products.

Source

Encapsulation of microbial cultures, such as lactic acid bacteria, in a fat matrix to improve their stability and viability during storage and processing. The encapsulated cultures retain viability through pasteurization and subsequent storage at ambient temperature, enabling their direct addition to dairy products without refrigeration. The encapsulation matrix comprises one or more fat components with a melting point of at least 30°C, which protects the cells from heat and prevents post-acidification during storage.

Source

Spray drying is a key method for producing stable and viable probiotic powders for food and pharmaceutical applications. This study optimized spray drying parameters to maintain probiotic viability, including inlet temperature, feed rate, and protective agents. The findings revealed that microencapsulation with biopolymers, such as alginate and proteins, significantly enhances probiotic stability during spray drying. Recent innovations in encapsulating materials and combining spray drying with other preservation methods further improve probiotic efficacy. This research underscores the importance of refining spray drying techniques to enhance the effectiveness of probiotics. Future studies should optimize these methods and explore their applications in various food matrices to develop more effective functional foods and therapeutic formulations. Advancements in spray drying and encapsulation technologies offer promising opportunities for improving probiotic delivery in the food and pharmaceutical industries.

Source

Probiotics, live microorganisms touted for their health-promoting properties, face limitations in stability and delivery, hindering their widespread public outreach. This review examines the potential of spray drying, a microencapsulation technique, as a key solution to unlock the power of probiotics for public benefit. Spray drying techniques is being employed for probiotics after analysing their advantages and challenges in preserving viable cultures, enhancing shelf life, and enabling diverse delivery formats. Spray drying empowers the incorporation of probiotics into various food products, facilitates the development of convenient supplements, and paves the way for targeted delivery for specific health needs and for the betterment of human being. Furthermore, the potential drawbacks of spray drying, such as viability loss and allergenicity concerns, emphasizing the need for further research to refine methods and optimize formulations are need to be analysed while using for drying applications. By critically evaluating the current landscape and future directions, this review highl... Read More

Source

Spray drying is one of the most frequently used encapsulation techniques. The incorporation of different active compounds in small capsules contributes to their protection and stability. Applications of spray drying of food ingredients are constantly being developed for the food industry due to the simplicity, low cost, effectiveness, and versatility of this technique. Probiotics and other active compounds, such as enzymes, can be encapsulated by spray drying by combining various carrier materials, such as maltodextrins, gums, modified starch, or alginate. However, exposure to high temperatures can be injurious to the integrity of probiotic cells or enzyme activity and can cause irreversible changes. Approaches such as enhancing pre- and postspray drying steps are crucial to maintaining the integrity of these active compounds in the dried powders. This review focuses mainly on two major factors affecting the survival of probiotics and the activity of enzymes during spray drying, namely, the choice of carrier/wall material and drying temperature, bringing new light on how these influe... Read More

Source

The protective effect of solid fat on probiotics to reduce heat damage during spray drying was revealed in previous study. However, the direct dispersion of fresh cells in the thermo-protectants did not encapsulate the probiotics in the oil phase, but dispersed in the water phase. Therefore, this study aims to improve the protective effect of solid fat to probiotics during spray drying by encapsulating Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG (LGG) in double emulsion (W/O/W) containing solid fat. In addition, various prebiotics were added in W/O/W as wall materials, and their ability of improving the vitality of probiotics was evaluated by combining spray drying and re-culture. The results of fluorescence microscope and scanning electron microscope demonstrated the successful encapsulation of LGG in double emulsions during spray drying, which increased the survival rate from 43.23% to 65.16% while improved the integrity of the subcellular structure. In terms of prebiotic effects, the microcapsules of W/O/W + inulin showed the lowest water activity and higher glass transition temperature, leading t... Read More

Source

The process of drying probiotic bacteria to enhance their storage stability is important for the food industry. This study aimed to assess the efficacy of various drying techniques and food-grade protectants in preserving the viability of Bifidobacterium animalis subsp. lactis KMP H9-01 during drying and under prolonged storage conditions. Among the four protectants tested (skim milk, trehalose, sucrose, and maltodextrin), trehalose and skim milk at 5% (w/v) were selected for freeze- and spray-drying, each conducted at different temperatures. This evaluation encompasses survivability and the observation of the shelf life of probiotic powders. The results demonstrated that spray-drying at 160 C/80 C, with either skim milk or trehalose as a protectant, yielded the highest viable cell counts (>log 7 CFU/g) even after 6 months of storage at room temperature in the range of 2530 C, regardless of the use of vacuum and nonvacuum packaging. Notably, the calculated inactivation rate values (KRT) demonstrated remarkable stability, ranging from 5.36 102 to 5.82 102 day1. Furthermore,... Read More

Source

Drying technologies are often utilized to maximize microbial shelf-life stability of probiotics-based foods. However, these processes inadvertently induce stress on microorganisms and reduce probiotic viability. This work sought to develop suitable protection strategies to maintain viability of powdered probiotics in different foods. A formulation platform (set of pre-existing/initial formulation templates for application/adaptation to various products) consisting of six powder formulations was evaluated. Each template combination comprised a probiotic, at least one prebiotic and at least one coating material. The powder particles were small (d50: 4.92 0.09 m to 9.30 1.09 m) to ensure optimal incorporation in foods for desirable mouthfeel, while all powders were favorably moisture-stable (aw: 0.34 0.53) and less susceptible to moisture uptake than their unencapsulated counterpart. At least one species from the platform was able to satisfy the viability and/or functional requirements on various food matrices which thus demonstrated its utility in formulation development.

Source