RESUMO
The ability of a water-soluble, single-stranded ß-1,3/1,6-glucan (ssß-glucan), recovered by hydrothermal treatment, to enhance the solubility and membrane permeability of poorly water-soluble compounds was examined. As a poorly water-soluble model compound, quercetin (QUE) was used. The aqueous solubility of spray-dried particles (SDPs) of QUE/ssß-glucan was significantly enhanced compared with that of the untreated QUE powder and the physical mixture of QUE/ssß-glucan. Fourier-transform infrared spectra and small-angle X-ray scattering suggested strong interactions between ssß-glucan and QUE in the SDPs, which was attributable to QUE entrapment in the helical ssß-glucan structure. The amount of QUE infused into Caco-2 cells from QUE/ssß-glucan SDPs was 16-fold and 5-fold higher than the amount infused from untreated QUE powder and the physical mixture of QUE/ssß-glucan, respectively. These results showed that water-soluble ssß-glucan improved QUE dissolution and membrane permeability.