Gluten‐Free Pan Bread Enriched With Microalgae (Dunaliella salina) and Encapsulated Lactobacillus acidophilus

TL;DR

This study developed gluten-free bread enriched with microalgae and probiotics to improve its nutritional and technological properties for people with celiac disease.

Contribution

The paper introduces a novel gluten-free bread formulation using encapsulated probiotics and microalgae to enhance nutritional and sensory attributes.

Findings

Encapsulation with chitosan maximized probiotic survival in gluten-free bread.

Higher microalgae concentrations improved color and texture but reduced taste and overall acceptance.

Microalgae addition enhanced dough water absorption and reduced development time.

Abstract

Celiac disease is a chronic intolerance to specific cereal prolamins containing particular oligopeptide sequences, leading to a lifelong intestinal disorder in gluten‐sensitive individuals. The only effective treatment for this condition is adherence to a lifelong gluten‐free diet. This study aimed to develop gluten‐free pan bread using rice and potato flours enriched with
Dunaliella salina
microalgae and
Lactobacillus acidophilus
. The bacterial strain was encapsulated using two different methods with three substances: emulsification/coating with chitosan, sodium caseinate, and whey protein isolate (WPI), followed by spray drying. The encapsulated probiotic bacteria, along with the microalgae, were incorporated into the gluten‐free bread formulation. Farinograph analysis revealed that the addition of
Dunaliella salina
increased water absorption, softening degree, and farinograph quality number, while reducing dough development and stability times. The encapsulation method significantly influenced the pH and acidity of the bread samples (p < 0.05), whereas the concentration of the microalgae had no significant effect on these parameters. The highest acidity was observed in the bread containing bacteria encapsulated with sodium caseinate and WPI. Increasing the concentration of
Dunaliella salina
resulted in a decrease in lightness (L*) and an increase in a* and b* values (p < 0.05). Encapsulation significantly enhanced probiotic viability in all treated samples compared to the control, with the highest probiotic count found in the sample encapsulated via emulsification/coating with chitosan (p < 0.05). Sensory evaluation demonstrated that increasing the microalgae concentration significantly improved the color, appearance, and texture sensorial evaluation scores of the bread, while reducing taste, odor, and overall acceptance. The results indicated that incorporating encapsulated
Lactobacillus acidophilus
with chitosan and 6 g
Dunaliella salina
per 100 g flours substantially enhances the nutritional and technological properties of gluten‐free bread. Furthermore, gluten‐free bread enriched with microalgae can serve as an effective carrier for the probiotic strain
Lactobacillus acidophilus
.

Gluten‐free pan bread was produced using rice–potato flour supplemented with
Dunaliella salina
(3 and 6 g/100 g) and
Lactobacillus acidophilus
(1 g/100 g) encapsulated via chitosan emulsification (A and B) and spray‐dried sodium caseinate (C and D) and WPI (E and F). The formulations yielded distinct loaf structures, where chitosan encapsulation maximized probiotic survival (A and B), and higher (6 g/100 g) microalgae levels (B, D, and F) intensified crumb pigmentation and modified rheological behavior, enhancing technological performance.

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