Investigation of microencapsulated lactobacillus plantarum survival in alginate microsphere incorporated with inulin and dextran in order to produce a novel probiotic whey beverage

Microencapsulation of Lactobacillus Plantarum was carried out using sodium alginate (Alg), inulin (IL), and dextran (DT) to increase the survivability of probiotic cells. The effects of IL (0.5, 1, and 1.5%) and DT (0.5, 1, and 1.5?mg/L) additions were investigated on the encapsulation efficiency (EE) and cell survivability in the gastric and biliary conditions. Results showed that microencapsulation significantly increased the cell survivability. 1.5% of IL and 0.5?mg/L of DT were the best concentrations to obtain the highest EE (93.55%). The microencapsulated cells within the Alg-IL-DT system had higher count than cells entrapped within the Alg microspheres either in gastric or biliary conditions. Inclusion of free cells and microencapsulated cells increased the probiotic count of whey beverage (WB). Albeit, the WB with the microencapsulated cells had higher probiotic count. pH was significantly decreased in drinks with probiotic cells while acidity was significantly increased. 2,3-Pentanedione, 2-Heptanone, Acetoin, Propylene glycol, 2-butoxyethoxy-2-Propanol, Benzaldehyde, Butyric acid, 4-methylbenzaldehyde, Hexanoic acid, Ethyl acetate, and Benzoic acid were the most abundant volatile compounds in WBs. The sensory test exhibited that addition of probiotic cells either in free or microencapsulated types increased the scores of sensory properties such as flavor, color, odor, concentration, and total acceptability. Thus, the microencapsulation of L. plantarum by Alg-IL-DT system can be taken into an advantage to increase the survivability of probiotic cells in strong acidic and saline conditions. Furthermore, incorporation of the microencapsulated cells in food products can increase their health aspects and palatability.