The physical properties of encapsulated forms of biologically active substances during enzymatic hydrolysis in vitro
This work deals with evaluation of possibility of encapsulated form of essential fatty acids development and their behavior during the enzymatic hydrolysis. Studies on the degree of swelling show that all capsules are reduced in size in “artificial stomach” due to the protonation of the free carboxylate groups of plant biopolymer used as the wall material, while capsules in the conditions of “artificial gut” showed swelling (≈ 40%). Observations showed that changes in the size of capsules containing 20 and 40% of essential fatty acids were similar. It has been revealed that increasing of the content of fatty acids leads to a decrease in gel strength and, consequently, a decrease in Young’s modulus. During the intestinal phase, Young’s modulus of the encapsulated form was not statistically different due to swelling and fragmentation of the polymer network. The data obtained allow considering the designed capsules as a protective material to prevent oxidation of essential fatty acids and their controlled delivery.