Effect of Nano-silica on the Stability and Efficacy of a Stomach-protecting Solid Drink
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Abstract:
In order to explore the feasibility of applying nano-scale food additives in functional foods, this research studied the anti-caking effect of silica (SiO2) and nano-silica (nSiO2) in stomach-protecting solid drink, and analyzed their effects on the efficacy of the resultant beverages. Added different proportions of SiO2 or nSiO2 to the stomach-protecting solid beverage prepared with raw materials including the extracts of astragalus, poria and puerarialobata as well as the polysaccharides of Hericium erinaceus. Through accelerated storage experiments, the stability of the solid beverages was evaluated using angle of repose and bulk density as the indices. The gastric protection efficacy was evaluated using normal human gastric mucosal epithelial cells (GES-1) and ethanol injury model. The results showed that in the addition range of 0~1.50%, the anti-caking effects of SiO2 and nSiO2 gradually increased with the increase of addition proportion: the angles of repose of SiO2 and nSiO2 at 1.50% were152 ° and 153 °, respectively, and the bulk densities were 2.17 mg/mL and 2.33 mg/mL, respectively (which were significantly different from those of the blank control group (p<0.05)), although there was no significant difference in the anti-caking effect between SiO2 and nSiO2. A 2-h induction with 1.00 mol/L of ethanol led to the construction of an ethanol-damaged GES-1 cell model. The results showed that the addition of SiO2 and nSiO2 has no adverse effect on the efficacy of stomach-protecting solid beverages. At the concentration of 31.25 μg/mL, nSiO2 also helped to enhance its promoting effect on the proliferation of GES-1 cells and preventive effects on the ethanol-damaged GES-1 cells, with the cell survival rates as 166% and 110%, respectively (which were significantly higher than those of the blank control group (100%; p<0.05)). Therefore, nano-silica has great application prospects in food production and the development of functional foods.
