Food protein engineering

Many enzymes have been the subject of protein engineering studies, including several that are important in medicine and industry, eg, lysozyme, trypsin, and cytochrome P450. SubtiHsin, a bacterial serine protease used in detergents, foods, and the manufacture of leather goods, has been particularly well studied (68). This emphasis is in part owing to the wealth of stmctural and mechanistic information that is available for this enzyme. 

In this chapter we examine the processes that have been developed to produce micro-organisms as a source of food protein. We will examine the reasons why micro-organisms have been considered as alternative protein sources, the substrates on which they have been grown, the various process technologies developed and the comparative economics of these processes. One process will be examined in depth, to illustrate how a team composed of such diverse people as microbiologists, process engineers, patent lawyers and cost analysts work together to develop a marketable product. 

Proteases are used in many industrial areas as well as basic research. They are classified by their mechanism of catalysis. Proteases are used in the pharmacological, food and other consumer industries to convert raw materials into a final product or to alter properties of the raw material. In biomedical research, proteases are used to study the structure of other proteins and for nthesis of peptides. The choice of a protease for an application depends in part on its specificity for peptide bonds, activity and stability. Technical advances in protein engineering have enabled alteration of these properties and allowed proteases to be used more effectively. Some easily obtained proteases can be modified so that they can substitute for proteases whose supply is limited. 

Food Protein Research and Development Center, Texas Engineering Experiment Station, Texas A M University System, College Station, TX 77843... 

This book updates and presents new information on the physicochem-istry of functionality, the roles and use of proteins for improving the functional properties of foods, and the application of data from model test systems to actual food ingredients. This volume should be useful to food processors, engineers, chemists, physicists, and others engaged in these or related areas of research. It also is hoped that this book will stimulate its readers to expand research on functionality. 

Batt, C.A. 1997. Genetic engineering of food proteins In Food Proteins and Their Applications (S. Damodaran and A. Paraf eds), pp. 425-441. Marcel Dekker, New York. 

Fabrication of protein nanotubes has the potential to lead food science and engineering to new heights. However further studies need to be conducted to fulfill the promise in many potential food applications. Interactions of nanotubes with the materials to be encapsulated— their structures, characteristics and controlled release properties—should be studied using the model or actual food systems. Another important area of future research is the investigation of the self-assembly characteristics of other food proteins that can be used for similar purposes. 

Food engineering Daryl B. Lund University of Wisconsin-Madison Food proteins/food chemistry Rickey Y. Yada University of Guelph... 

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