{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,21]],"date-time":"2026-08-21T15:32:06Z","timestamp":1787326326597,"version":"build-2736575974"},"reference-count":42,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"8","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,21]],"date-time":"2026-08-21T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1787270400000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"National Key Research and Development Plan","award":["2022YFD1301300"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["2022YFD1301300"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Antioxidants"],"abstract":"<jats:p>\u03b2-carotene has excellent antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities. However, its poor chemical stability and susceptibility to oxidative degradation strongly limit its practical application. Therefore, encapsulation technology serves as a crucial delivery method to achieve the bioavailability of \u03b2-carotene. The study aimed to explore effects of microencapsulated and nanoemulsified \u03b2-carotene on antioxidant and anti-inflammatory function in weaned piglets. A total of 147 healthy weaned piglets with similar initial body weight (7.75 \u00b1 0.09 kg) were randomly divided into three groups: control group (CON), microencapsulated \u03b2-carotene treatment group (B1) and nanoemulsified \u03b2-carotene treatment group (B2). Results showed that the two \u03b2-carotene preparations remarkably improved growth performance, antioxidant capacity and immunity of weaned piglets compared with the CON group (p &lt; 0.05). In tissues of liver, jejunum and colon, B1 and B2 groups increased antioxidase activity (CAT, SOD, T-AOC) and concentrations of anti-inflammatory cytokines (IL-2, IL-4, IL-10, IFN-\u03b3), with reduced MDA and pro-inflammatory cytokines (IL-1\u03b2, IL-6, IL-12, TNF-\u03b1) contents. Both B1 and B2 treatments improved intestinal barrier function and optimized jejunal microbial composition compared with the CON group (p &lt; 0.05). The B2 group exerted far superior antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects compared with the B1 group (p &lt; 0.001). In conclusion, the nanoemulsion delivery system can improve antioxidant and anti-inflammatory function of \u03b2-carotene in weaned piglets compared with the traditional microencapsulated form. Our findings provide a theoretical basis for the popularization and application of nanoemulsified \u03b2-carotene to improve the bioavailability of \u03b2-carotene.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/antiox15081046","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,21]],"date-time":"2026-08-21T14:20:36Z","timestamp":1787322036000},"page":"1046","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Effects of Microencapsulated and Nanoemulsified \u03b2-Carotene on Antioxidant and Anti-Inflammatory Function in Weaned Piglets"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"15","author":[{"given":"Qi","family":"Zhu","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"State Key Laboratory of Animal Nutrition and Feeding, College of Animal Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Fudong","family":"Zhang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"State Key Laboratory of Animal Nutrition and Feeding, College of Animal Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Zhu","family":"Zhu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"State Key Laboratory of Animal Nutrition and Feeding, College of Animal Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Xinyuan","family":"Ye","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"State Key Laboratory of Animal Nutrition and Feeding, College of Animal Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-3965-117X","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Ge","family":"Zhang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"State Key Laboratory of Animal Nutrition and Feeding, College of Animal Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Zeyu","family":"Zhang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"State Key Laboratory of Animal Nutrition and Feeding, College of Animal Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Jinbiao","family":"Zhao","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"State Key Laboratory of Animal Nutrition and Feeding, College of Animal Science and Technology, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,21]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2804","DOI":"10.3168\/jds.S0022-0302(93)77619-5","article-title":"Role of Carotenoids in the Immune Response","volume":"76","author":"Chew","year":"1993","journal-title":"J. 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