Research News

Cell wall proteins exhibit emulsifying action, offer possible alternative to emulsifiers derived from milk, other known allergens

Yeast protein as emulsifier

The yeast-derived protein Tdh2 displays emulsifying properties comparable to milk-derived casein.

Credit: Osaka Metropolitan University

Mention emulsifiers and many people might be unaware what they are used for, but they are present in many daily products, from food to cosmetics. They keep substances that don’t usually mix, like water and oil, from separating and are either synthetically made or derived from milk, eggs, and soybeans, which are known as major food allergens. Thus, Osaka Metropolitan University researchers are looking at yeast proteins as emulsifiers.

A research group led by Graduate School of Engineering Professor Masayuki Azuma and Associate Professor Yoshihiro Ojima previously showed that three yeast cell wall proteins (Gas1, Gas3, and Gas5) have high emulsifying activity. However, they are strongly bound and anchored to the cell wall, so this time they found emulsifying proteins that can be easily freed from the yeast.

Of these proteins, Fba1 showed the strongest emulsifying action. On the cell surface there also reportedly exists the protein Tdh2, which in the experiments displayed properties as strong as that of Fba1 and comparable to that of casein, a commercial emulsifier usually derived from milk.

“The identification of the major emulsifying proteins in yeast cell wall components is expected to promote the use of these yeast extracts,” stated Professor Azuma. “By increasing the productivity of the identified proteins, we expect that they can be applied as purified emulsifying proteins.”

The findings were published in Food Hydrocolloids.

Funding

This work was supported by funding from the Public Foundation of Elizabeth Arnold-Fuji, Japan.

Paper information

Journal: Food Hydrocolloids
Title: Yeast cell wall-derived proteins: Identification and characterization as food emulsifiers
DOI: 10.1016/j.foodhyd.2024.110746
Authors: Daiki Saito, Shinsuke Nerome, Manami Tachiwana, Yoshihiro Ojima, Masayuki Azuma
Published: 19 October 2024
URL: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodhyd.2024.110746

Contact

Masayuki Azuma

Graduate School of Engineering
azuma[at]omu.ac.jp

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