Nanoparticles loaded with phlorizin fabricate a fortified yogurt with antioxidant potential

Phlorizin (PHL) has various biological activities, especially powerful antioxidant effects, but its water solubility limits its application. In this study, zein-encapsulated PHL nanoparticles (zein-PHL nanoparticles), as well as zein and gum arabic (GA) co-encapsulated PHL nanoparticles (zein/GA-PHL nanoparticles) were prepared by the antisolvent precipitation method. On this basis, encapsulated PHL nanoparticles were added to yogurt to make fortified yogurt. Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction (XRD) experiments showed that the main driving forces for nanoparticle formation were electrostatic interactions and hydrogen bonding between compounds. Zein-PHL nanoparticles were more sensitive to temperature and salt ions than zein/GA-PHL nanoparticles. The addition of GA can improve the stability of the nanoparticles. In addition, the nanoparticles encapsulated with PHL were applied to yogurt. It was found that the nanoparticles improved the antioxidant capacity and water-holding capacity of yogurt, which provides a reference for the development of functional yogurt containing flavonoid compounds.