Mingqian TanState Key Lab of Marine Food Processing & Safety Control, National Engineering Research Center of Seafood, Collaborative Innovation Center of Seafood Deep Processing, Nutrition and Health Food Pilot Base of Liaoning Dalian, Academy of Food Interdisciplinary Science, School of Food Science and Technology, Dalian Polytechnic University

Astaxanthin (AXT), a well-known bioactive carotenoid with multiple double bonds, is found in marine animals and plants such as microalgae, shrimp, crabs and salmon. AXT has excellent antioxidant and anti-inflammatory biological activities and has been increasingly used in the field of food and medicine. AXT could resist the progression of chronic diseases by reducing the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and ROS-modified proteins in mitochondria. However, AXT has poor water solubility and is easily damaged by external factors such as temperature, light and oxygen, which limits its application. In this study, we reported the design and application of targeting delivery systems with stimuli-responsive release and mitochondrial targeting property for precision nutrition in the intervention of inflammation bowel disease (IBD).  Our data indicated that the astaxanthin nanoparticles showed both pH and ROS stimuli-responsive release characteristics. In vitro cell experiments showed that astaxanthin nanoparticles significantly inhibited the production of ROS and mitochondrial depolarization induced by oxidative stress. In vivo colitis experiment of mice revealed that astaxanthin nanoparticles could significantly relieve colitis, protect the integrity of colon tissue and restore the expression of tight junction proteins ZO-1 and occludin. The mouse colitis damage induced by dextran sulfate sodium was significantly alleviated, and the integrity of the colon tissue structure was improved, the secretion of inflammation factors was inhibited. All of these results demonstrated that the targeted nutrition design could improve the oral bioavailability of hydrophobic active compounds AXT in precision nutrition of disease.