Fabrication of Fructooligosaccharide‐ Larimichthys crocea Peptide Copolymer by Wet‐Heating for Enhanced Calcium Delivery and Bone‐Lipid Metabolism Regulation

ABSTRACT Calcium delivery systems based on food‐derived peptides and polysaccharides offer a promising strategy for improving calcium bioavailability while preserving peptide bioactivity. In this study, a fructooligosaccharide‐ Larimichthys crocea peptide (FOS‐LCP) copolymer was fabricated by wet‐heating and evaluated as a multifunctional calcium carrier. FOS‐LCP showed improved calcium‐binding capacity, digestive stability, and resistance to dietary inhibitors, thus increasing Ca 2+ uptake and transport in intestinal models in vitro. Bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells isolated from calcium–deficient mice were used to assess bone‐lipid regulation in vitro. In the presence of Ca 2+ , FOS‐LCP promoted osteogenic differentiation and osteogenic marker expression, suppressed adipogenic differentiation, activated the Wnt/β‐catenin pathway, inhibited PPARγ/C/EBPα‐driven lipogenesis, reduced adipokine secretion, and enhanced lipolytic gene expression. These findings indicate that FOS‐LCP coordinately enhances calcium absorption and rebalances bone‐lipid metabolism at the cellular level, supporting wet‐heating‐derived peptide‐polysaccharide copolymers as promising functional calcium delivery systems.