Extraction and Characterization of Oil Bodies from Soy Beans: A Natural Source of Pre-Emulsified Soybean Oil

Soybeans contain oil bodies that are coated by a layer of oleosin proteins. In nature, this protein coating protects the oil bodies from environmental stresses and may be utilized by food manufacturers for the same purpose. In this study, oil bodies were extracted from soybean using an aqueous extraction method that involved blending, dispersion (pH 8.6), filtration, and centrifugation steps. The influence of NaCl (0–250 mM), thermal processing (30–90 °C, 20 min) and pH (2–8) on the properties and stability of the oil bodies was analyzed using ζ-potential, particle size, and creaming stability measurements. The extracted oil bodies were relatively small (d₃₂ ≈ 250 nm), and their ζ-potential went from around +12 mV to −20 mV as the pH was increased from 2 to 8, with an isoelectric point around pH 4. The oil bodies were stable to aggregation and creaming at low (pH = 2) and high (pH ≥ 6) pH values but were unstable at intermediate values (3 ≤ pH ≤ 5), which was attributed to their relatively low ζ-potential. The oil bodies were stable to aggregation and creaming at relatively low salt concentrations (NaCl ≤ 25 mM, pH 7) but were unstable at higher values as a result of electrostatic screening effects. The oil bodies were stable to thermal processing from 30 to 90 °C (0 mM NaCl, pH 7), but there appeared to be a change in their interfacial properties (decrease in ζ-potential) at temperatures exceeding 60 °C. These results suggest that oil bodies extracted from soybeans have similar or improved stability compared to soybean oil emulsions produced from bulk ingredients and may provide a new way of creating functional soy products for the food industry.