Stéphane Pezennec

The protein net electric charge determines the surface rheological properties of ovalbumin adsorbed at the air–water interface

Abstract Adsorption of purified diphosphorylated Al-ovalbumin at the air–water interface was studied by ellipsometry, surface tension, and shear elastic constant measurements. The value of pH did not significantly affect the final value of surface concentration. It affected slightly the kinetics of surface pressure increase and the final value of surface pressure. The interfacial rheology was affected strongly by pH. The interface exhibited a maximum of the shear elastic constant at a pH close to the isoelectric pH of ovalbumin. The bulk protein concentration also had a more pronounced effect on the surface rheology when the protein net charge was low. At a pH where the protein net charge is negative, an increase of the ionic strength increased the final value of the shear elastic constant. The results suggest that interactions between adsorbed ovalbumin molecules, which form slowly in the adsorbed layer upon conformational rearrangements, impart rigidity to the interface, and that these intermolecular associations are hindered at high protein net charge.

Application of chromatography and mass spectrometry to the characterization of food proteins and derived peptides.

The following review describes the development of mass spectrometry off-line and on-line coupled with liquid chromatography to the analysis of food proteins. It includes the significant results recently obtained in the field of milk, egg and cereal proteins. This paper also outlines the research carried out in the area of food protein hydrolysates, which are important components in foodstuffs due to their functional properties. Liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry have been particularly used for the characterization of food peptides and especially in dairy products.

The structure of infant formulas impacts their lipolysis, proteolysis and disintegration during in vitro gastric digestion

Milk lipids supply most of the calories necessary for newborn growth in maternal milk or infant formulas. The chemical composition of infant formulas has been optimized but not the structure of the emulsion. There is still a major difference between the native emulsions of milk fat globules and processed submicronic emulsions in infant formulas. This difference may modify the kinetics of digestion of emulsions in newborns and influence lipid metabolism. To check this, semi-dynamic gastric in vitro digestions were conducted on three matrices: a standardized milk emulsion containing native milk fat globules referred to as minimally-processed emulsion and two processed model infant formulas (homogenized or homogenized/pasteurized). Gastric conditions mimicked those reported in newborns. The minimally-processed emulsion was lipolyzed and proteolyzed slower than processed formulas. The difference in initial structure persisted during digestion. The surface of the droplets was the key parameter to control gastric lipolysis kinetics, the pattern of released fatty acids and proteolysis by faster hydrolysis of adsorbed proteins.

Comparison of rheological properties of acid gels made from heated casein combined with β-lactoglobulin or egg ovalbumin

Abstract Gelation of heat-treated milk protein solutions by acid fermentation was performed using a model system of micellar casein alone (systR), micellar casein and β -lactoglobulin (systB) or micellar casein and egg ovalbumin (systO) dissolved in a milk ultrafiltrate and heat-treated at 90°C for 24xa0min. Solubility of globular proteins at given pH values and their interactions with casein were determined. Particle size and ζ -potential of the protein systems were measured before and after heat treatment. Acid gelation of the heated systems was monitored using dynamic low-amplitude strain oscillation. Ovalbumin alone or with casein produced larger particles than casein alone or with β -lactoglobulin upon heat treatment. The systems gelled at different pH values, i.e. 4.88, 5.47 and 5.88 in systR, systB and systO, respectively. The latter two pH values were clearly related to the pH of the loss of solubility of the heated globular proteins. While the gelation pattern for systR resembled unheated milk, the pattern for systB and systO showed the usual maximum for tanxa0 δ of heated milk.

Adsorption of gastric lipase onto multicomponent model lipid monolayers with phase separation

The enzymatic lipolysis of complex natural lipoproteic assemblies such as milk fat globules is central in neonatal digestion. This process first requires the rapid adsorption of a lipolytic enzyme, gastric lipase, onto the membrane enveloping the triglyceride substrate before the onset of catalytic activity. The interactions governing lipase adsorption onto this complex lipid/water interface are not fully elucidated. This study was designed to unravel the interactions of recombinant dog gastric lipase (rDGL) with model monolayers presenting liquid-liquid phase coexistence and mimicking the outer leaflet of the milk fat globule membrane. Combining biophysical tools (ellipsometry, tensiometry and atomic force microscopy), it was evidenced that rDGL partitions toward liquid expanded phase and at phase boundaries. rDGL gets adsorbed at several levels of insertion suggesting molecular cooperation that may favor insertion and strongly impacts on the lipid phase lateral organization. The addition of phosphatidylserine, negatively charged, reinforced adsorption; hence besides hydrophobic interactions and as further investigated through surface potential modeling, rDGL adsorption is favored by electrostatic interactions.

A methodology for monitoring globular milk protein changes induced by ultrafiltration: a dual structural and functional approach.

Understanding filtration mechanisms at a molecular level is important for predicting structural and functional properties of globular milk proteins after membrane operations. This stage is thus highly decisive for the further development of membrane separations as an efficient alternative to chromatographic processes for the fractionation of milk proteins. In this study, we proposed an original and complete analytical package for the examination of the putative effect of filtration at both macroscopic and molecular levels. We then investigated the pertinence of this analytical package during ultrafiltration (UF) of globular milk proteins in both dead-end and crossflow modes. Reverse-phase HPLC combined with statistical computing was shown to be relevant for the assessment of even slight physically induced modifications. Adaptations of circular dichroism and solubility measurements, regarding their respective dependence on temperature and pH, were also useful for an accurate evaluation of functional modifications. At last, immunochemistry was proven to be a pertinent tool for the specific detection of modifications affecting a targeted protein, even in mixed solutions. Moreover, results obtained by such methods were shown to be coherent with data obtained from classical techniques such as fluorescence. For beta-lactoglobulin, some physically induced modifications were noticed in the permeate because of shear stress inside membrane pores. In the case of alpha-lactalbumin dead-end UF, permeation was shown to affect protein characteristics because of an increase in the relative calcium content responsible for a conformational transition from the apo-form to the holo-form of the protein. Finally, during crossflow UF with limited transmission of BSA, observations were coherent with a partial aggregation because of the circulation of proteins in the filtration pilot. Such a hypothesis corroborates results previously mentioned in the literature.

Unexpected differences in the behavior of ovotransferrin at the air-water interface at pH 6.5 and 8.0

Adsorption of purified apo-ovotransferrin at the air-water interface was studied by ellipsometry, surface tension, polarization-modulation infrared reflection-absorption spectroscopy (PM-IRRAS), and shear elastic constant measurements. No significant difference was observed between pH 6.5 and 8.0 as regards the final value of surface concentration and surface pressure. However at low concentration, a weak barrier to adsorption is evidenced at pH 6.5 and confirmed by PM-IRRAS measurements. At a pH where the protein net charge is negative (pH 8.0), the behavior of ovotransferrin at the air-water interface is more influenced by charge effects rather than bulk concentration effects. At this pH, the interface exhibits a low shear elastic constant and a spectral signature not usual for globular proteins.

Protein molecule stratification inside a single curved film: Evidence from X-ray scattering

We have studied single curved films stabilized by globular proteins, using small angle scattering. By combining both the use of in-house X-ray and synchrotron radiation, we have measured the structural properties of films (thickness, electronic density) by controlling the physicochemical properties of protein (ovalbumin, pH 7, bulk concentration 10 g L−1). For each experiment, solutions of highly purified protein were freshly prepared to eliminate any problem of aging. The observation of Kiessig fringes shows that the films are thin with an average thickness of 60 nm. Benefiting from the fine angular resolution and the short acquisition time of a synchrotron source, we have highlighted a stratification formation inside the films. This phenomenon suggests protein structural reorganization under confinement, possibly driven by high osmotic pressure.

Moderate conformational impact of citrate on ovotransferrin considerably increases its capacity to self-assemble at the interface.

We have compared the behavior of ovotransferrin at the air-solution interface in the presence of a monovalent ion (acetate), or a divalent ion (citrate), the latter being known to induce conformational changes of this protein upon interaction with its iron-binding sites. We have characterised the adsorption layer at the air-water interface in terms of homogeneity, surface concentration excess and rheological properties at pH 4.0. Besides we have investigated the bulk conformation in the presence of the two anions. In the presence of citrate only, interfacial layers display well-defined domains of higher overall surface concentration suggesting multilayers adsorption. Citrate also induces higher helical content and stabilizes the protein against thermal denaturation. Hence we propose that these changes are involved in the propensity of ovotransferrin to self-assemble at the air-water interface resulting in thick and heterogeneous interfacial layer.