Exploring how changes to the steroidal core alter oleogelation capability in sterol: γ-oryzanol blends.

Oleogels based on sterols such as ß-sitosterol blended with the sterol ester γ-oryzanol are a very interesting class of systems, but there are aspects of their formation and structure that remain elusive. It has previously been shown that a methyl group on the C30 position of the sterol-ester plays an important role in gelation. This work explored the effect that having C30 methyl groups on both the sterol and the sterol-ester had on the gelation process and subsequent gel structure. Lanosterol and saponified γ-oryzanol (which was synthesized as part of this study) were identified as materials of interest, as both feature a methyl group on the C30 position of their steroidal cores. It was observed that both sterols formed gels when blended with γ-oryzanol, and also that lanosterol gelled sunflower oil without the addition of γ-oryzanol. All of these gels were significantly weaker than that formed by ß-sitosterol blended with γ-oryzanol. To explore why, molecular docking simulations along with AFM and SAXS were used to examine these gels on a broad range of length scales. The results suggest that saponified γ-oryzanol-γ-oryzanol gels have a very similar structure to that of ß-sitosterol-γ-oryzanol gels. Lanosterol-γ-oryzanol gels and pure lanosterol gel, however, form with a totally different structure facilitated by the head-to-tail stacking motif exhibited by lanosterol. These results give further evidence that relatively slight changes to the molecular structure of gelators can result in significant differences in subsequent gel properties.

Manipulation of Recrystallization and Network Formation of Oil-Dispersed Micronized Fat Crystals.

A detailed investigation was carried out on the modulation of the coupling between network formation and the recrystallization of oil-dispersed micronized fat crystal (MFC) nanoplatelets by varying oil composition, shear, and temperature. Sunflower (SF) and bean (BO) oils were used as dispersing media for MFC nanoplatelets. During MFC dispersion production at high shear, a significant increase in the average crystal thickness (ACT) could be observed, pointing to recrystallization of the MFC nanoplatelets. More rapid recrystallization of MFC occurred in the SF dispersion than in the BO dispersion, which is attributed to higher solubility of MFC in the SF oil. When the dispersions were maintained under low shear in narrow gap Couette geometry, we witnessed two stages of recrystallization (measured via rheo-SAXD) and the development of a local yield stress (measured via rheo-MRI). In the first stage, shear-enabled mass transfer induces rapid recrystallization of randomly distributed MFC nanoplatelets, which is reflected in a rapid increase in ACT (rheo-SAXD). The formation of a space-filling weak-link MFC network explains the increase in yield stress (assessed in real time by rheo-MRI). In this second stage, recrystallization slows down and yield stress decreases as a result of the formation of MFC aggregates in the weak link network, as observed by confocal Raman imaging. The high fractal dimension of the weak-link network indicates that aggregation takes place via a particle-cluster mechanism. The effects of oil type and shear on the recrystallization rate and network strength could be reproduced in a stirred bowl with a heterogeneous shear stress field, which opens perspectives for the rational manipulation of MFC thickness and network strength under industrial processing conditions.

Novel low-molecular-weight-gelator-based microcapsules with controllable morphology and temperature responsiveness.

A new type of microcapsules with controllable morphology is presented. They are based on a low-molecular-weight gelator and can be switched from temperature-stable to temperature-responsive by simply modifying the preparation method.

Stability of aqueous food grade fibrillar systems against pH change.

We report that the stability of an aqueous food grade fibril system upon pH change is affected by the presence of peptides that are formed during the process of fibril formation. We discuss several other relationships between food relevant properties and nano-scale characteristics, and compare these relationships for aqueous fibril systems to those of oil based fibril systems. In such fibril systems, dynamics, self-organisation, and sensitivity to external conditions, play an important role. These aspects are common to complex systems in general and define the future challenge in relating functional properties of food to molecular scale properties of their ingredients.

Elucidation of density profile of self-assembled sitosterol + oryzanol tubules with small-angle neutron scattering.

Small-angle neutron scattering (SANS) experiments have been performed on self-assembled tubules of sitosterol and oryzanol in triglyceride oils to investigate details of their structure. Alternative organic phases (deuterated and non-deuterated decane, limonene, castor oil and eugenol) were used to both vary the contrast with respect to the tubules and investigate the influence of solvent chemistry. The tubules were found to be composed of an inner and an outer shell containing the androsterol group of sitosterol or oryzanol and the ferulic acid moieties in the oryzanol molecule, respectively. While the inner shell has previously been detected in SAXS experiments, the outer shell was not discernible due to similar scattering length density with respect to the surrounding solvent for X-rays. By performing contrast variation SANS experiments, both for the solvent and structurant, a far more detailed description of the self-assembled system is obtainable. A model is introduced to fit the SANS data; we find that the dimensions of the inner shell agree quantitatively with the analysis performed in earlier SAXS data (radius of 39.4 +/- 5.6 angstroms for core and inner shell together, wall thickness of 15.1 +/- 5.5 angstroms). However, the newly revealed outer shell was found to be thinner than the inner shell (wall thickness 8.0 +/- 6.5 angstroms). The changes in the scattering patterns may be explained in terms of the contrast between the structurant and the organic phase and does not require any subtle indirect effects caused by the presence of water, other than water promoting the formation of sitosterol monohydrate in emulsions with aqueous phases with high water activity.

Organogel-emulsions with mixtures of ß-sitosterol and γ-oryzanol: influence of water activity and type of oil phase on gelling capability.

In this study, water-in-oil emulsions were prepared from water containing different salt concentrations dispersed in an oil phase containing a mixture of ß-sitosterol and γ-oryzanol. In pure oil, the ß-sitosterol and γ-oryzanol molecules self-assemble into tubular microstructures to produce a firm organogel. However, in the emulsion, the water molecules bind to the ß-sitosterol molecules, forming monohydrate crystals that hinder the formation of the tubules and resulting in a weaker emulsion-gel. Addition of salt to the water phase decreases the water activity, thereby suppressing the formation of sitosterol monohydrate crystals even after prolonged storage times (∼1 year). When the emulsions were prepared with less polar oils, the tubular microstructure was promoted, which significantly increased the firmness of the emulsion-gel. The main conclusion of this study is that the formation of oryzanol and sitosterol tubular microstructure in the emulsion can be promoted by reducing the water activity and/or by using oils of low polarity.

Attenuated total internal reflection infrared microscopy of multilayer plastic packaging foils.

Multilayer plastic foils are important packaging materials that are used to extend the shelf life of food products and drinks. Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopic imaging using attenuated total internal reflection (ATR) can be used for the identification and localization of different layers in multilayer foils. A new type of ATR crystal was used in combination with a linear array detector through which large sample areas (400 x 400 microm(2)) could be imaged with a pixel size of 1.6 microm. The method was tested on laminated plastic packing materials containing 5 to 12 layers. The results of the identification of the different materials using ATR-FT-IR were compared with differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and the layer thickness of the individual layers measured by ATR-FT-IR was compared with polarized light microscopy (LM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). It has been demonstrated that individual layers with a thickness of about 3 microm could be identified in multilayer foils with a total thickness ranging from 100 to 150 microm. The results show a spatial resolution of about 4 microm (measured at wavenumbers ranging from 1000 to 1730 cm(-1)), which is about a factor of two better than can be obtained using transmission FT-IR imaging. An additional advantage of ATR is the ease of sample preparation. A good correspondence was found between visible and FT-IR images. The results of ATR-FT-IR imaging were in agreement with those obtained by LM, SEM, and DSC. ATR-FT-IR is superior to the combination of these techniques because it delivers both spatial and chemical information.