Abstract
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•WPs co-assembled with WBC to form novel hydrophilic nanocomplex.•Sodium tripolyphosphate can be used to enhanced the co-assembly structure.•The co-assembled hydrophilic nanocomplex displayed typical core–shell structure.•The nanocomplex achieved effective embedding and slow release of curcumin.
Low-cost wheat by-products have been modified to become an effective delivery system for curcumin. Wheat bran cellulose (WBC) and wheat gluten proteins (WPs) were co-assembled by a pH cycle and addition of sodium tripolyphosphate (STP). Fluorescence spectroscopy and zeta-potential evidenced that the embedding of WBC into the WPs favored the formation composites a relative unfolding state. Modifying the nanocomposite with STP lowered the Dh and PDI of the co-assembled structure. The nanocomplexes had a typical core–shell structure according to TEM characterization, where proteins aggregate to form a hydrophobic core and the hydrophilic WBC and STP crosslinked to form the shell. To improve the bioavailability of curcumin, it was encapsulated in WWBCs composites by participating in their structural co-assembly. In vitro simulated gastrointestinal digestion experiments showed that the curcumin encapsulated in WWBCs possessed gastrointestinal slow and controlled release function, with a final release of curcumin of 77.8 ± 2.3 %.