SURVIVABILITY OF ENCAPSULATED LACTOBACILLI IN HIGH ACID FOODS

This study aimed to evaluate the survivability of lactobacilli cells encapsulated in calcium alginate beads coated with methacrylic acid copolymers (MAc) in high acidic foods (orange juice and mayonnaise). Lactobacilli survived well at low temperature (4 degrees C) for 6 wk in orange juice, 4 wk in heat-treated orange juice, 12 wk in mayonnaise, and 8 wk in heat-treated mayonnaise (P<0.05), without affecting the acidity of orange juice and mayonnaise during storage. FTIR spectra showed that the characteristic peaks of calcium alginate and MAc were not altered, designating no high affinity interaction between calcium alginate and MAc. DSC of MAc-coated alginate beads indicated an increased in melting temperature, demonstrating improvement in molecular orientation in the MAc-coated alginate beads compared to the control. Sensory evaluation revealed that panellists could detect the presence of MAc-coated alginate beads, leading to a lower acceptance score.