Impregnation of Vitamin D ₃ in <i>Saccharomyces pastorianus</i> Cells by Vacuum‐Assisted Biosorption: High Efficiency and Speed Compared to Conventional Method

Vitamin D₃ (cholecalciferol) deficiency is a major public health challenge worldwide. The development of reliable methods for its protection and distribution is essential for effective supplementation. In this study, vacuum-assisted biosorption followed by spray drying was investigated to determine the encapsulation of vitamin D₃ in brewer yeast cells. The size of the particles produced ranged from 20.04 µm (plasmolyzed cells) to 37.40 µm (intact cells), with plasmolyzed cells exhibiting higher electronegativity (zeta potential: -19.8 to -20.0 mV). Morphological analysis using scanning electron microscopy and confocal microscopy revealed greater shrinkage of the plasmolyzed cells. Stability tests over 60 days revealed a 31.2% retention of vitamin D₃ in intact cells and 20.6% in plasmolyzed cells. The plasmolysis process improved the efficiency of impregnation by about 42%. This method shows potential for stabilizing and protecting vitamin D₃ in yeast-based delivery systems, which is a promising approach for sustainable food fortification.