Abstract:

In this study, the egg white hydrolysates which were prepared using an enzymatic membrane reactor (EMR) equipped with a 10 kD molecular weight cut-off ultra-filtration membrane, and refined by macroporous adsorption resin chromatography were analyzed and evaluated for their nutritional composition. Native egg white was used as the control to analyze their free amino acid composition, relative molecular mass distribution and amino acid composition. Besides, their amino acid scores were determined according to the analytical results of amino acid composition. The results indicated that the free amino acid content of the hydrolysates was 0.386%. The peptides composed of 2 to 4 amino acid residues in the hydrolysates were approximately 71%. The essential amino acids in the hydrolysates represented approximately 44.8% of the total amino acids and their amino acid score was 113.3, which was much higher than that of native egg white (55.1). The hydrolysates were characteristic of fast absorption, balanced nutrition and high healthcare value. As a conclusion, they can be extensively applied in functional food products.

Key words: enzymatic membrane reactor (EMR), egg white hydrolysate, amino acid score, relative molecular mass distribution