1. The Impact of Annealing Methods on the Encapsulating Structure and Storage-Stability of Freeze-Dried Pellets of Probiotic Bacteria.
- Author
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Palmkron SB, Bergenståhl B, Hall S, Håkansson S, Wahlgren M, Larsson E, and Fureby AM
- Subjects
- Sucrose chemistry, Microscopy, Electron, Scanning methods, Polysaccharides chemistry, X-Ray Microtomography, Drug Stability, Drug Storage, Freeze Drying methods, Probiotics chemistry
- Abstract
Objective: This paper investigates the critical role of material thickness in freeze-dried pellets for enhancing the storage stability of encapsulated bacteria. Freeze dried material of varying thicknesses obtained from different annealing durations is quantified using Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and X-ray microtomography (μCT), the material thickness is then correlated to the storage stability of the encapsulated cells., Methods: A formulation comprising of sucrose, maltodextrin, and probiotic cells is quenched in liquid nitrogen to form pellets. The pellets undergo different durations of annealing before undergoing freeze-drying. The material thickness is quantified using SEM and μCT. Storage stability in both oxygen-rich and oxygen-poor environments is evaluated by measuring CFU counts and correlated with the pellet structure., Results: The varying annealing protocols produce a range of material thicknesses, with more extensive annealing resulting in thicker materials. Storage stability exhibits a positive correlation with material thickness, indicating improved stability with thicker materials. Non-annealed pellets exhibit structural irregularities and inconsistent storage stability, highlighting the impracticality of avoiding annealing in the freeze-drying process., Conclusions: Extensive annealing not only enhances the storage stability of probiotic products but also provides greater control over the freeze-drying process, ensuring homogeneous and reproducible products. This study underscores the importance of material thickness in freeze-dried pellets for optimizing storage stability for probiotic formulations, and emphasize the necessity of annealing as a critical step in freeze-drying quenched pellets to achieve desired structural and stability outcomes., (© 2024. The Author(s).)
- Published
- 2024
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