{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,30]],"date-time":"2026-07-30T09:17:23Z","timestamp":1785403043628,"version":"3.56.0"},"reference-count":83,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"7","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,30]],"date-time":"2026-03-30T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1774828800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"European Union, EFRE","award":["10169193"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["10169193"]}]},{"award":["10169193"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["10169193"]}],"id":[{"id":"https:\/\/ror.org\/019w4f821","id-type":"ROR","asserted-by":"publisher"}]},{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100002839","name":"Charit\u00e9-Universit\u00e4tsmedizin Berlin","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100002839","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"crossref"}]},{"id":[{"id":"https:\/\/ror.org\/001w7jn25","id-type":"ROR","asserted-by":"publisher"}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Nutrients"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Background: Iron deficiency remains a major nutritional challenge, partly due to the limited stability and bioavailability of conventional iron formulations in foods and during digestion. In this study, iron\u2013protein microparticles (IP-MPs) based on bovine serum albumin (IA-MPs) and hemp protein (IH-MPs) were developed via coprecipitation and evaluated as food-compatible iron delivery systems. Methods: Iron\u2013protein microparticles (IP-MPs) were fabricated by a coprecipitation technique. The stability of IP-MPs was investigated in a three-phase digestion model. The uptake of IP-MPs by Caco-2 cells as well as the Ferritin concentration in Caco-2 cells were investigated. Results: Particle morphology and size distribution were strongly dependent on the protein matrix, with hemp protein microparticles exhibiting greater size uniformity and higher stability under simulated gastric conditions. In a standardized in vitro gastrointestinal digestion model, both IP-MP formulations preserved iron predominantly in the bioactive Fe(II) state and remained sufficiently intact to reach the intestinal phase. Biocompatibility and iron uptake were assessed using Caco-2 cell monolayers. Neither formulation induced cytotoxic effects, while iron delivered via IP-MPs showed enhanced cellular uptake compared to a commercial iron supplement and ferrous sulfate. The amount of Fe(II) detected in the basolateral compartment of IH-MP and IA-MP samples (1.4 \u00b5g and 1.3 \u00b5g, respectively) was higher than that observed for Floradix\u00ae samples (approximately 0.7 \u00b5g) and corresponded to about 25% of the total iron applied. Functional iron bioavailability, assessed by ferritin formation, was significantly higher for IP-MPs, with hemp protein microparticles yielding the strongest ferritin response. Conclusions: These results demonstrate that iron\u2013protein microparticles, particularly those based on hemp protein, effectively improve iron stability during digestion and enhance cellular iron bioavailability, highlighting their potential for application in iron fortification and functional food systems.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/nu18071102","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,30]],"date-time":"2026-03-30T12:11:59Z","timestamp":1774872719000},"page":"1102","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":2,"title":["Bioavailability of Functional Iron in Protein Microparticles"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"18","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-7209-7687","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Saranya","family":"Chaiwaree","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Institute of Transfusion Medicine, Charit\u00e9-Universit\u00e4tsmedizin Berlin, 10117 Berlin, Germany"},{"name":"Department of Pharmaceutical Technology and Biotechnology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Payap University, Chiang Mai 50210, Thailand"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-1546-5540","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Radostina","family":"Georgieva","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Institute of Transfusion Medicine, Charit\u00e9-Universit\u00e4tsmedizin Berlin, 10117 Berlin, Germany"},{"name":"Department of Medical Physics, Biophysics and Radiology, Medical Faculty, Trakia University, 6000 Stara Zagora, Bulgaria"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0003-9601-9282","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Till","family":"Deckart","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Institute of Transfusion Medicine, Charit\u00e9-Universit\u00e4tsmedizin Berlin, 10117 Berlin, Germany"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Juliane","family":"Lenz","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Institute of Transfusion Medicine, Charit\u00e9-Universit\u00e4tsmedizin Berlin, 10117 Berlin, Germany"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Thawanrat","family":"Choonukoolphong","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Institute of Transfusion Medicine, Charit\u00e9-Universit\u00e4tsmedizin Berlin, 10117 Berlin, Germany"},{"name":"Department of Pharmaceutical Technology and Biotechnology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Payap University, Chiang Mai 50210, Thailand"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0006-6827-9564","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Sureeporn","family":"Suriyaprom","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-1494-1680","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Ausanai","family":"Prapan","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Institute of Transfusion Medicine, Charit\u00e9-Universit\u00e4tsmedizin Berlin, 10117 Berlin, Germany"},{"name":"Department of Radiological Technology, Faculty of Allied Health Sciences, Naresuan University, Phitsanulok 65000, Thailand"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0001-7011-8595","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Nitsanat","family":"Cheepchirasuk","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Institute of Transfusion Medicine, Charit\u00e9-Universit\u00e4tsmedizin Berlin, 10117 Berlin, Germany"},{"name":"Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-0225-7358","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Axel","family":"Pru\u00df","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Institute of Transfusion Medicine, Charit\u00e9-Universit\u00e4tsmedizin Berlin, 10117 Berlin, Germany"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-2445-8185","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Yu","family":"Xiong","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Institute of Transfusion Medicine, Charit\u00e9-Universit\u00e4tsmedizin Berlin, 10117 Berlin, Germany"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-0754-0638","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Yingmanee","family":"Tragoolpua","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-2573-2289","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Hans","family":"B\u00e4umler","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Institute of Transfusion Medicine, Charit\u00e9-Universit\u00e4tsmedizin Berlin, 10117 Berlin, Germany"},{"name":"Department of Pharmaceutical Technology and Biotechnology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Payap University, Chiang Mai 50210, Thailand"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,30]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"e713","DOI":"10.1016\/S2352-3026(23)00160-6","article-title":"Prevalence, Years Lived with Disability, and Trends in Anaemia Burden by Severity and Cause, 1990\u20132021: Findings from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2021","volume":"10","author":"Gardner","year":"2023","journal-title":"Lancet 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