In vitro food digestion model for monitoring the gastrointestinal fate and nutrition of foods and their components (2017-2020)
Introduction
Understanding the gastrointestinal fate of food components is crucial for evaluating their nutritional value and health benefits. My research focuses on using a rapid in vitro INFOGEST digestion model to simulate the dynamic conditions of the human gastrointestinal tract, allowing detailed analysis of how food components behave during digestion. This approach enables the assessment of the gastrointestinal stability, bioavailability, and absorption of nutrients, such as lipids and bioactive compounds. By integrating advanced analytical techniques such as chromatography and mass spectrometry with computational simulations like molecular dynamics, my work will provide valuable insights into the interactions between food components and digestive enzymes, as well as their gastrointestinal absorption and associated health effects. This research not only enhances our understanding of food digestion but also facilitates the development of functional foods optimized for improved nutritional efficacy and health outcomes.
Figure 1. The in vitro digestion model for monitoring the gastrointestinal fate and nutritional impact of food components.
Reference
Zhou, H.; McClements, D. J. Recent advances in the gastrointestinal fate of organic and inorganic nanoparticles in foods. Nanomaterials 2022, 12 (7), 1099. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/nano12071099.
Zhou, H.‡; Tan, Y.‡; McClements, D. J. Applications of the INFOGEST in vitro digestion model to foods: A review. Annual Review of Food Science and Technology 2023, 14 (Volume 14, 2023), 135-156. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-food-060721-012235.
Gastrointestinal fate of bioactive compounds in foods
Dr. Zhou, the Principal Investigator, began working with the in vitro digestion model in 2018 during her Ph.D. studies in Dr. McClements’ lab. Her doctoral research focused on investigating the gastrointestinal fate of lipids and bioactive compounds, as well as understanding how food nanoparticles influence their digestion. Building on this foundation, our lab continues to refine and develop a rapid in vitro digestion model to study digestion behavior across a variety of foods, enhancing our ability to evaluate their nutritional properties and bioavailability.
We studied the gastrointestinal stability and bioavailability of various bioactive compounds, including polyphenols (e.g., curcumin, resveratrol, and quercetin), vitamins, and nutraceuticals (e.g., lutein, β-carotene).
- Polyphenols
We demonstrated that encapsulating hydrophobic polyphenols in plant-based nanoemulsions significantly enhanced the bioaccessibility of hydrophobic polyphenols, with the type of carrier oil playing a pivotal role in solubilizing these compounds into mixed micelles during digestion. Using curcumin, resveratrol, and quercetin as model compounds, we observed that the gastrointestinal stability and bioaccessibility of these polyphenols were directly influenced by their partitioning behavior between the oil and water phases in emulsions (Zhou et al., 2021; Zhou et al., 2021). Nanoemulsions formulated with oils that efficiently release lipids during digestion promoted better incorporation of the polyphenols into mixed micelles, potentially enhancing their transport across the intestinal epithelium. These findings highlight the importance of optimizing carrier oil selection in designing emulsified delivery systems to maximize the bioavailability of lipophilic polyphenols.
Reference
Zhou, H.; Zheng, B.; McClements, D. J. In vitro gastrointestinal stability of lipophilic polyphenols is dependent on their oil-water partitioning in emulsions: Studies on curcumin, resveratrol, and quercetin. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry 2021, 69 (11), 3340-3350. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jafc.0c07578.
Zhou, H.; Zheng, B.; McClements, D. J. Encapsulation of lipophilic polyphenols in plant-based nanoemulsions: Impact of carrier oil on lipid digestion and curcumin, resveratrol and quercetin bioaccessibility. Food & Function 2021, 12 (8), 3420-3432. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1039/D1FO00275A.
- Vitamins
For fat-soluble vitamins, our investigations revealed that the type and size of lipid droplets in plant-based emulsions also influence the bioaccessibility of fat-soluble vitamins such as A, D, and E, with smaller droplet sizes improving the solubilization and transport of these vitamins during digestion (Tan et al., 2021). Additionally, the use of stabilizers such as nanochitin in Pickering emulsions modified the digestive process by reducing lipid digestion rates, which subsequently impacted the bioaccessibility of vitamin D and other fat-soluble nutrients (Zhou et al., 2020; Zhou et al., 2021).
Reference
Zhou, H.; Liu, J.; Dai, T.; Muriel Mundo, J. L.; Tan, Y.; Bai, L.; McClements, D. J. The gastrointestinal fate of inorganic and organic nanoparticles in vitamin D-fortified plant-based milks. Food Hydrocolloids 2021, 112, 106310. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodhyd.2020.106310.
Tan, Y.; Zhou, H.; Zhang, Z.; McClements, D. J. Bioaccessibility of oil-soluble vitamins (A, D, E) in plant-based emulsions: Impact of oil droplet size. Food & Function 2021, 12 (9), 3883-3897. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1039/D1FO00347J.
Zhou, H.; Tan, Y.; Lv, S.; Liu, J.; Muriel Mundo, J. L.; Bai, L.; Rojas, O. J.; McClements, D. J. Nanochitin-stabilized Pickering emulsions: Influence of nanochitin on lipid digestibility and vitamin bioaccessibility. Food Hydrocolloids 2020, 106, 105878. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodhyd.2020.105878.
- Lutein and β-carotene
Our research focuses on enhancing the bioaccessibility of lipophilic nutraceuticals like lutein and β-carotene. We demonstrated that lutein-fortified plant-based egg analogs significantly improved lutein bioaccessibility during digestion (Vu et al., 2023). Nanoemulsions optimized for lipid digestion were shown to be highly effective in delivering lutein compared to dietary supplements (Dai et al., 2021). Additionally, oil droplet concentration was identified as a key factor influencing β-carotene bioaccessibility in standardized digestion models (Tan et al., 2020). These findings emphasize the importance of tailored delivery systems for maximizing the absorption of lipophilic nutraceuticals.
Reference
Vu, G.; Xiang, X.; Zhou, H.*; McClements, D. J. Lutein-fortified plant-based egg analogs designed to improve eye health: Formation, characterization, in vitro digestion, and bioaccessibility. Foods 2023, 12 (1), 2. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/foods12010002.
Dai, L.; Zhou, L.; Zhou, H.; Zheng, B.; Ji, N.; Xu, X.; He, X.; Xiong, L.; McClements, D. J.; Sun, Q. Comparison of lutein bioaccessibility from dietary supplement-excipient nanoemulsions and nanoemulsion-based delivery systems. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry 2021, 69 (46), 13925-13932. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jafc.1c05261.
Tan, Y.; Zhang, Z.; Zhou, H.; Xiao, H.; McClements, D. J. Factors impacting lipid digestion and β-carotene bioaccessibility assessed by standardized gastrointestinal model (INFOGEST): Oil droplet concentration. Food & Function 2020, 11 (8), 7126-7137. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1039/D0FO01506G.
- Calcium
We demonstrated that fortifying plant-based milk with calcium reduced vitamin D bioaccessibility, highlighting the complex interactions between minerals and fat-soluble vitamins during digestion (Zhou et al., 2021). Additionally, we showed that calcium levels significantly influenced lipid digestion and the bioaccessibility of nutraceuticals in nanoemulsion delivery systems, emphasizing the need for optimized formulations to balance mineral fortification and nutrient absorption (Tan et al., 2020).
Reference
Zhou, H.; Zheng, B.; Zhang, Z.; Zhang, R.; He, L.; McClements, D. J. Fortification of plant-based milk with calcium may reduce vitamin D bioaccessibility: An in vitro digestion study. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry 2021, 69 (14), 4223-4233. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jafc.1c01525.
Tan, Y.; Li, R.; Zhou, H.; Liu, J.; Muriel Mundo, J.; Zhang, R.; McClements, D. J. Impact of calcium levels on lipid digestion and nutraceutical bioaccessibility in nanoemulsion delivery systems studied using standardized INFOGEST digestion protocol. Food & Function 2020, 11 (1), 174-186. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1039/C9FO01669D.