Ana Bucić-Kojić

Grape pomace is a byproduct of wineries and a sustainable source of bioactive phenolic compounds. Encapsulation of phenolics with a well-chosen coating may be a promising means of delivering them to the intestine, where they can then be absorbed and exert their health-promoting properties, including antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anticancer, cardioprotective, and antimicrobial effects. Ionic gelation of grape pomace extract with natural coatings (sodium alginate and its combination with maltodextrins, gelatin, chitosan, gums Tragacanth and Arabic) was performed, and the resulting hydrogel microbeads were then air-, vacuum-, and freeze-dried to prevent spoilage. Freeze-drying showed advantages in preserving the geometrical parameters and morphology of the microbeads compared to other drying techniques. A good relationship was found between the physicochemical properties of the dried microbeads and the in vitro release of phenolics. Freeze-dried microbeads showed the highest cumulative release of phenols in the intestinal phase (23.65–43.27 mgGAE/gMB), while the most suitable release dynamics in vitro were observed for alginate-based microbeads in combination with gelatin, gum Arabic, and 1.5% (w/v) chitosan. The results highlight the importance of developing encapsulated formulations containing a natural source of bioactive compounds that can be used in various functional foods and pharmaceutical products.