褐藻中发现的橙红色胡萝卜素类黄色素富胥藻油醇（fucoxanthin）以其众多生物活性特性而闻名。近年来，富胥藻油醇的生物活性特性得到了广泛研究，使其成为各种健康应用（如抗癌、抗肿瘤、抗糖尿病和抗肥胖）的极具兴趣的化合物。然而，富胥藻油醇在胃肠道中的生物利用度低和不稳定性具有重大限制。封装是一种有前景的方法，通过将富胥藻油醇包裹在保护性层（如脂质体或纳米颗粒）中，以克服这些挑战。封装可以通过保护富胥藻油醇免受热、pH、光照、胃酸和能加速其降解的酶的作用，改善其稳定性。研究表明，基于脂质的封装系统（如脂质体或纳米结构脂质载体）可以溶解富胥藻油醇并提高其生物利用度（从25%提高到61.2%）。此外，封装还可以改善疏水性富胥藻油醇的溶解度，这对其吸收和生物利用度非常重要。本综述突出了富胥藻油醇在生物体内吸收的挑战、微观和纳米封装富胥藻油醇的作用以及它们增强肠道吸收能力的潜力。© 2023. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.

Fucoxanthin is an orange-red xanthophyll carotenoid found in brown seaweeds and known for its many bioactive properties. In recent years, the bioactive properties of fucoxanthin have been widely explored, making it a compound of immense interest for various health applications like anti-cancer, anti-tumour, anti-diabetic and anti-obesity properties. However, the poor bioavailability and instability of fucoxanthin in the gastrointestinal tract have major limitations. Encapsulation is a promising approach to overcome these challenges by enclosing fucoxanthin in a protective layer, such as liposomes or nano-particles. Encapsulation can improve the stability of fucoxanthin by protecting it from exposure to heat, pH, illumination, gastric acids and enzymes that can accelerate its degradation.Studies have shown that lipid-based encapsulation systems such as liposomes or nano-structured lipid carriers may solubilise fucoxanthin and enhance its bioavailability (from 25 to 61.2%). In addition, encapsulation can also improve the solubility of hydrophobic fucoxanthin, which is important for its absorption and bioavailability. This review highlights the challenges involved in the absorption of fucoxanthin in the living system, role of micro- and nano-encapsulation of fucoxanthin and their potential to enhance intestinal absorption.© 2023. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.