Abstract: Protein is one of the three major nutrients that plays an important role in the food, pharmaceutical and material industries due to its functional properties in addition to high nutritional value. The functional properties of proteins are related to their molecular structure, which can be modified by physical, chemical, enzymatic and genetic engineering methods so as to improve the functional properties, nutritional value and food sensory quality. Therefore, the structural modification of proteins can enlarge their scope of application and meet the industrial demand. Enzymatic modification is a promising method for protein structural modification to obtain modified protein products with defined characteristics because of its high safety, mild reaction conditions, and high product acceptance. This article comprehensively summarizes the recent progresses in the enzymatic modification of proteins, including hydrolysis, crosslinking and covalent grafting. The functional properties of modified proteins are discussed and future prospects for their application are also presented.

Key words: proteins, enzymatic modification, functional properties, application