Maillard Reactions in Food Processing: Flavor-Enhancing and Risk-Reducing—A Look at the Structure and Function of Proteins and Polysaccharides

A special issue of Foods (ISSN 2304-8158). This special issue belongs to the section "Food Physics and (Bio)Chemistry".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 January 2025 | Viewed by 1183

Special Issue Editors

College of Food Science & Technology, Shanghai Ocean University, Shanghai 201306, China
Interests: structure/function of polysaccharides; Maillard reaction; regulation of dietary fiber in starch digestion and absorption; chitosan-based food packaging films; chitosan-based nano-delivery materials; delivery of active ingredients; structure and function of proteins during processing
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
School of Health Science and Engineering, University of Shanghai for Science and Technology, Shanghai 200093, China
Interests: dietary fiber; structural characterization; rheology; interaction; food structuring
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The Maillard reaction, also known as the "non-enzymatic browning reaction", is a reaction between carbonyl compounds (reduced sugars) and amino compounds (amino acids and proteins) that, through a complex process, ultimately produces brown or even black macromolecules such as nigrosine or melanin, and is therefore also known as the carbonyl–ammonia reaction. The Maillard reaction has been of great interest since the 1950s and, in the 1960s, research focused on the isolation and identification of its volatile compounds. In the 1970s and early 1980s, research on Maillard reactions focused on the simulation of reaction systems, reaction conditions, and analysis of the resulting flavor compounds. In recent years, the Maillard reaction has become a new research hotspot in food science, nutrition, flavour chemistry, toxicology, and herbal medicine. However, continued application and development of the Maillard reaction across various fields still requires further in-depth research. Improved understanding of the reaction mechanisms and control of the key points of the reaction is of great practical significance to the food industry.

Dr. Tao Sun
Dr. Hui Zhang
Guest Editors

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Keywords

  • control of Maillard reactions in foods
  • biological activity of the products of Maillard reactions
  • application of Maillard reaction products
  • structural and functional modification of polysaccharides during Maillard reactions
  • structural and functional modification of proteins during Maillard reactions
  • flavor-enhancing of food using Maillard reactions

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

16 pages, 2288 KiB  
Article
Effect of Mono- and Polysaccharide on the Structure and Property of Soy Protein Isolate during Maillard Reaction
by Kun Wen, Qiyun Zhang, Jing Xie, Bin Xue, Xiaohui Li, Xiaojun Bian and Tao Sun
Foods 2024, 13(17), 2832; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods13172832 - 6 Sep 2024
Viewed by 822
Abstract
As a protein extracted from soybeans, soy protein isolate (SPI) may undergo the Maillard reaction (MR) with co-existing saccharides during the processing of soy-containing foods, potentially altering its structural and functional properties. This work aimed to investigate the effect of mono- and polysaccharides [...] Read more.
As a protein extracted from soybeans, soy protein isolate (SPI) may undergo the Maillard reaction (MR) with co-existing saccharides during the processing of soy-containing foods, potentially altering its structural and functional properties. This work aimed to investigate the effect of mono- and polysaccharides on the structure and functional properties of SPI during MR. The study found that compared to oat β-glucan, the reaction rate between SPI and D-galactose was faster, leading to a higher degree of glycosylation in the SPI–galactose conjugate. D-galactose and oat β-glucan showed different influences on the secondary structure of SPI and the microenvironment of its hydrophobic amino acids. These structural variations subsequently impact a variety of the properties of the SPI conjugates. The SPI–galactose conjugate exhibited superior solubility, surface hydrophobicity, and viscosity. Meanwhile, the SPI–galactose conjugate possessed better emulsifying stability, capability to produce foam, and stability of foam than the SPI–β-glucan conjugate. Interestingly, the SPI–β-glucan conjugate, despite its lower viscosity, showed stronger hypoglycemic activity, potentially due to the inherent activity of oat β-glucan. The SPI–galactose conjugate exhibited superior antioxidant properties due to its higher content of hydroxyl groups on its molecules. These results showed that the type of saccharides had significant influences on the SPI during MR. Full article
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