article · Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture
Bioactive peptides derived from food proteins demonstrate diverse health benefits, but their laboratory potency rarely translates to effective performance in the body. This issue stems from severe gastrointestinal digestion, weak permeability through the intestinal lining, and quick clearance from the body. The food matrix plays an essential role in dictating peptide bioavailability. Molecular interactions between peptides and surrounding proteins, lipids, carbohydrates, and polyphenols directly affect stability and bioaccessibility. Different environments, including dairy, plant-based, and engineered matrices, exert varying control over peptide release kinetics. Addressing current delivery barriers requires a comprehensive approach to functional food design. Developing matrix-engineered systems, such as microencapsulation and probiotic fermentation, provides a viable pathway to protect peptides and improve their oral absorption in consumers.
Bioactive peptides offer promising health benefits, yet the human digestive system often destroys them before they can take effect. By examining how different food structures and components interact with these peptides, researchers can design functional foods that safeguard these nutrients during digestion, ensuring they successfully reach the bloodstream to deliver their intended health advantages.
This work informs the design of functional foods and nutraceuticals by identifying matrix-engineered delivery methods, such as microencapsulation and probiotic fermentation, to protect peptides. These insights are primarily relevant to food product developers, ingredient manufacturers, and nutraceutical formulators. Because this review focuses on synthesising current literature, identifying knowledge gaps, and proposing conceptual strategies, the research is at an early conceptual stage rather than near immediate market deployment.
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Bioactive peptides (BAPs) derived from food proteins exhibit a wide range of health-promoting activities, but their potent in vitro bioactivity is disconnected from their often-limited efficacy in vivo. This discrepancy is driven by aggressive gastrointestinal digestion, low epithelial permeability, and rapid systemic clearance. This review assesses the critical role of the food matrix (FM) in regulating peptide bioavailability, addressing the new challenge of overcoming low oral absorption of diverse peptide classes. First, foundational concepts are established, defining the multi-scale nature of FM and the characteristics of BAPs. The physiological barriers to absorption are then detailed, focusing on enzymatic degradation and the mechanisms of transepithelial transport. The core of this review examines the specific molecular interactions between peptides and proteins, lipids, carbohydrates, and polyphenols, showing how they govern stability and bioaccessibility. A comparative analysis of dairy, plant-based, and engineered matrices illustrates how different food structures control release kinetics. Finally, methodologies from in silico prediction to in vivo models are critically evaluated. To solve these delivery challenges, we identify crucial knowledge gaps and suggest future directions, specifically advocating for matrix-engineered delivery systems (such as microencapsulation and probiotic fermentation) to establish a holistic, matrix-aware approach to functional food design. © 2026 Society of Chemical Industry.
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DOI: 10.1002/jsfa.70998
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