Food-grade Microemulsions As Nano-scale Controlled Delivery Vehicles - Food and Industrial Bioproducts and Bioprocessing - page 157

scale matrices for food use, it is essential that they meet safety regulations and be acceptable
to consumers. In concert, it is important to understand the mechanism of how nutrients
(bioactive peptides, vitamins, etc.) solubilized within microemulsions are delivered and
absorbed in the body. Part of this challenge lies in understanding the changes in phase
behavior upon dilution or addition of a nutrient into microemulsions.
For detailed structural studies, a multi-pronged approach combining scattering (DLS,
SAXS and SANS), imaging (electron microscopy, cryo-TEM) and other techniques
(NMR, conductance, viscosity, etc.) has proven highly beneficial for the characterization
of microemulsion properties. As well, the development of novel techniques has helped
to better elucidate microemulsions structure; for instance, freeze-fracture direct imaging
is now a viable alternative to standard cryo-TEM. As well, computer simulation is now
providing new knowledge regarding the interactions between the components present in
microemulsions.
As microemulsions have been well studied and applied in the pharmaceutical industry,
an inter-disciplinary (pharma-food) approach would highly benefit the development of
novel foods. Lastly, continued in-depth research on microemulsions beyond the laboratory
benchtop is crucial for the development of new and improved delivery systems to be used as
health-romoting functional foods.
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