Nanoemulsion Delivery Systems for Bioactive Compound Bioavailability
Summary
Nanoemulsion delivery systems represent a rapidly evolving strategy to improve the oral bioavailability of lipophilic bioactive compounds by forming sub-micrometre oil-in-water dispersions stabilised with suitable surfactants or biopolymers. Their small droplet size and high surface area accelerate digestive enzyme access, enhancing the solubilisation of vitamins, carotenoids, polyphenols and other nutraceuticals within mixed micelles. In addition, the interfacial properties of droplets can be tailored to protect labile compounds from chemical degradation during gastric and intestinal transit, while promoting controlled release and absorption across the intestinal epithelium. Recent advances in formulation design have leveraged multilayer coatings, novel emulsifiers and optimised lipid phases to balance colloidal stability, encapsulation efficiency and in vivo performance. Beyond their fundamental importance, nanoemulsion technologies have global significance in functional foods, dietary supplements and pharmaceutical applications, offering scalable routes to deliver poorly water-soluble compounds more effectively and consistently.
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Nanoemulsion Delivery Systems for Bioactive Compound Bioavailability publication trend
The graph below shows the total number of articles in nanoemulsion delivery systems for bioactive compound bioavailability across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).
Technical terms
Nanoemulsion: A colloidal dispersion of oil droplets (typically 20–200 nm) in water, stabilised by surfactants to enhance solubility and absorption of hydrophobic compounds.
Bioaccessibility: The proportion of an ingested compound that is released from its matrix in the gastrointestinal tract and becomes available for absorption.
Polydispersity index (PdI): A dimensionless measure of droplet size uniformity within an emulsion, where lower values indicate a more homogenous population.
Entrapment efficiency: The percentage of a bioactive compound successfully encapsulated within droplets relative to the total amount initially introduced.
Emulsifier: A surface-active agent that adsorbs at the oil–water interface to reduce interfacial tension and stabilise dispersed droplets against coalescence.
References
- Stability and bioaccessibility of α-tocopherol-enriched nanoemulsions containing different edible oils as carriers. LWT (2023).
- The Effect of Multilayer Nanoemulsion on the In Vitro Digestion and Antioxidant Activity of β-Carotene. Antioxidants (2024).
- Nanoemulsions for Enhancement of Curcumin Bioavailability and Their Safety Evaluation: Effect of Emulsifier Type. Nanomaterials (2021).
- Nanoemulsions as delivery systems for lipophilic nutraceuticals: strategies for improving their formulation, stability, functionality and bioavailability. Food Science and Biotechnology (2020).
- Excipient Nanoemulsions for Improving Oral Bioavailability of Bioactives. Nanomaterials (2016).
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