Designing hydrogel particles for controlled or targeted release of lipophilic bioactive agents in the gastrointestinal tract

Numerous lipophilic bioactive agents within the food and pharmaceutical industries need to be encapsulated within delivery systems to overcome problems associated with poor water-solubility, chemical instability, and/or low oral bioavailability. Hydrogel particles are finding increasing utilization for encapsulation, protection, and controlled release of lipophilic bioactives. These particles can often be fabricated from food-grade biopolymers (such as proteins and polysaccharides) using simple processing operations (such as complexation, antisolvent precipitation, homogenization, injection, shearing, and thermal processing). In this article, we review recent developments in the design and fabrication of food-grade hydrogel particles suitable for oral ingestion. In particular, we focus on the application of hydrogel particles for controlled or targeted release of lipophilic bioactive agents in the gastrointestinal tract including the mouth, stomach, small intestine, and colon. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.