Systematical consumption of functional products has a significant positive effect on health and can reduce the risk of diseases. The aim of this study was to investigate the possibility of using whey protein hydrolysate (WPH) and pumpkin pectin as ingredients in a functional mousse, to evaluate the mousse’s antioxidant and hypotensive activities in vitro, and to evaluate the effect of the long-term intake of mousse samples on the progression of hypertension in spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRs) and on the microbiome status in Wistar rats with antibiotic-induced dysbiosis. The experimental mousse’s in vitro antioxidant activity (oxygen radical absorbance capacity) increased by 1.2 times. The hypotensive (angiotensin-1-converting enzyme inhibitory) activity increased by 6 times in comparison with a commercial mousse. Moreover, the addition of pectin allowed the elimination of the bitter aftertaste of WPH. In vivo testing confirmed the hypotensive properties of the experimental mousse. The systolic blood pressure in SHRs decreased by 18 mmHg and diastolic blood pressure by 12 mmHg. The experimental mousse also showed a pronounced bifidogenic effect. The Bifidobacterium spp. population increased by 3.7 times in rats orally administered with the experimental mousse. The results of these studies confirm that WPH and pumpkin pectin are prospective ingredients for the development of functional mousses.

Whey is a by-product of the production of various types of cottage cheese and cheese, casein, and coprecipitates. Conditions of milk coagulation directly affect the physico-chemical properties of whey and the formation of its protein profile. This fact makes it difficult to standardize the protein profile of milk whey for its further processing. Whey proteins have a great potential to release a wide range of bioactive peptides (BAP), capable of reducing the risk of a number of chronic food-related diseases. Computer modeling of an enzymatic hydrolysis of proteins is one of the ways to increase the efficiency of BAP release studies and to reduce the number of labor consuming experiments. This research is aimed at generating a digital model of the peptide complex of different whey types with predicted bioactivity, safety, and sensory properties using bioinformatic modeling approaches. The study was performed with the use of the proteomic databases tools according to the algorithm of hybrid strategy of bioinformatic modeling developed earlier. As a result of the study, taking into account the ranking of the proteins ratio in the protein profile, the hydrolysis by the protease complex chymotrypsin C-subtilisin was characterized as the maximum efficacy method to release peptides with both antioxidant and ACE-inhibitory activity. It was also observed that the bioactive peptides obtained as a result of in silico hydrolysis after GI digestion simulation can be considered safe in terms of allergic reactions and toxicological effects.

During the last decade, research into genetic markers in the casein gene cluster has been actively introduced in cattle breeding programs. A special interest has been paid to the polymorphism of the CSN3 gene, responsible for the expression of the k-casein, playing a key role in protein coagulation, interaction with whey proteins, stabilization, and aggregation of casein micelles. This paper aimed to determine the effect of CSN3 genetic polymorphism on acid; rennet; acid–rennet; heat- and acid-induced as well as heat- and calcium-induced coagulation in skimmed milk; and protein-standardized milk systems (UF, NF, RO, VE). The influence of polymorphic variants of the CSN3 gene on the coagulation ability of milk proteins was assessed by the particle size of casein micelles, protein retention factor in the clot, and coagulation ability (duration of induction period, mass coagulation period, dynamic viscosity in gel point). The correlation between CSN3 gene polymorphism and protein coagulation was revealed. Milk systems obtained from CSN3 BB milk were found to have the shortest duration of coagulation, formation of better gel strength values, and increased yield compared to CSN3 AA. This study will improve the efficiency of milk processing and optimize the technology of dairy product production.

Absract. Introduction. With the advent of membrane filtration technologies, milk whey stopped being a “by-product” of cheese, cottage cheese, and casein production. The combination of various whey-processing technologies, e.g. enzymatic hydrolysis and membrane fractionation, made it possible to obtain concentrates, isolates, and hydrolysates of whey proteins with various biologically active effects. Study objects and methods. The article features research results of Russian and foreign scientific teams in the development of functional antidiabetic ingredients from hydrolyzed proteins of milk and whey. Results and discussion. According to foreign studies, Ile-Pro-Ile (diprotin A) with an IC50 value of 4.7 μM is one of the most effective low molecular mass peptides with an inhibitory potential against DPP-IV. Various studies of trypsin hydrolysis of β-lactoglobulin described the production of IPAVF peptide fragment with the most potent inhibitory activity of DPP-IV (IC50 = 44.7 μM). Other studies featured pepsin-treated lactoglobulin production of fragments LKPTPEGDL and LKPTPEGDLEIL with inhibitory activity DPP-IV IC50 = 45 and 57 μM, respectively. A number of studies described similar fragments obtained by the sequential action of the enzyme preparation Neutrase 0.8 LTM on β-lactoglobulin, followed by pepsin hydrolysis. As for the hydrolysis of α-lactalbumin with pepsin, scientists identified peptides WLAHKALCSEKLDQ, LAHKALCSEKL, and TKCEVFRE. They revealed a high inhibitory potential against DPP-IV (IC50 = 141, 165, and 166 μM, respectively). Tryptic hydrolysates of bovine β-lactoglobulin proved to be able to inhibit DPP-IV in vitro (IC50 of 210 μM). Peptide VAGTWY was the major compound responsible for this effect, displaying an IC50 of 174 μM. In other research, tryptic hydrolysate inhibited DPP-IV with an IC50 value of 1.6 mg/mL, also demonstrating antioxidant and ACE-inhibitory activities. This hydrolysate became source of VAGTWY, the most potent DPP-IV inhibitor (IC50 of 74.9 μM). Conclusion. An analysis of Russian and foreign studies proved that milk protein hydrolysis has a great potential for antidiabetic additives used in the treatment of type II diabetes. This are requires further research in order to define the safety of biologically active peptides.

Whey protein hydrolysates (WPHs) are one of the most promising sources of biofunctional peptides with such beneficial properties as antioxidant, antihypertensive, anti-inflammatory and others. WPHs also could be used as foaming agents for aerated products (e.g., milk shake type drinks). However, WPH alone has a bitter taste and foamed WPH should be stabilized by additional ingredients. Here, we present a composition including WPH and three polysaccharides—pumpkin pectin, sodium alginate and ι-carrageenan—used as foam stabilizers. Polysaccharide content was selected according to foaming, organoleptic antioxidant and angiotensin-I-converting enzyme inhibitory characteristics of the resulted composition. Further, the hypotensive, antioxidant and hepatoprotective properties of the composition were proved by in vivo tests performed in spontaneously hypertensive rats and Wistar rats with CCl₄-induced hepatic injury.