Water-in-oil Pickering emulsions stabilized solely by a naturally occurring steroidal sapogenin: Diosgenin

In this study, stable water-in-oil emulsions stabilized solely by a naturally occurring steroidal sapogenin was reported for the first time. The results show that a concentrated emulsion with an internal water ratio of up to 60% can be obtained with only 3% of diosgenin concentration. The concentration of diosgenin had a significant effect on the microstructure and rheological properties of the emulsions. More importantly, the emulsion has excellent freeze/thaw stability and thermal stability. The results of polarized light microscopy, CLSM, and XRD indicate that the great structural properties and high stability of the emulsion can be attributed to the combined action of the diosgenin crystal shells on the droplet surface and needle-crystals in the continuous phase. That is, Pickering stabilization and network stabilization acting synergistically on stabilization of the emulsions. This novel food grade water-in-oil emulsions demonstrated great potential for application in food and biomedicalrelated fields.

Automated summary

This study reports the first stable water-in-oil emulsions stabilized solely by a naturally occurring steroidal sapogenin. Concentrated emulsions with high internal water ratios can be obtained with low diosgenin concentrations, which significantly influence the microstructure and rheological properties. The emulsions exhibit excellent freeze/thaw stability and thermal stability, with the structural properties attributed to the combined action of diosgenin crystal shells and needle-crystals. This novel food grade emulsion demonstrates great potential for applications in food and biomedical-related fields.