Enhancement of environmental and gastrointestinal digestive stability of probiotic-loaded liposomes: Study of inulin gelation and prebiotic effects

This study develops a liposome–inulin gel delivery system to enhance the environmental and gastrointestinal stability of Lactobacillus rhamnosus . As the inulin gel ratio increases from 1:1 to 1:3, the encapsulation efficiency of probiotic-loaded system (L-Lip@gel) significantly increases, reaching ~89% ( P  < 0.05), accompanied by an increase in particle size, reduced zeta potential (−6.2 mV) and a higher polydispersity index (0.47). Microstructural characterisation indicates that the inulin gel coating interacts with the hydrophilic core of liposomes via hydrogen bonding and steric effects, forming a stable composite structure. During 28 days of storage, viable probiotic counts remain >6 log cfu/mL and exceed to 7 log cfu/mL under acidic conditions, oxidative stress and simulated gastrointestinal digestion. The release behaviour follows both the zero-order and Korsmeyer–Peppas kinetic models with significantly reduced membrane permeability ( P  < 0.05). Overall, the proposed system effectively enhances probiotic stability and bioavailability.