Analyzing molecular weight distribution of whey protein hydrolysates

Process parameters on enzymatic hydrolysis and molecular weight (MW) distribution of whey protein hydrolysates were investigated. Whey protein hydrolysates were first gained by the alkaline protease alcalase for 7 h at temperature (50 °C), pH (8.0) and E/S (3%). The diversification of the hydrolysis degree and dissociative amino acid content was investigated during the whey hydrolysis. The dissociative amino acid content was 56.09 μmol/mL with the hydrolysis degree of 20.04%. The results of Sephadex G25 washing and high performance liquid chromatography–electrospray ionization–mass spectrometry (HPLC–ESI–MS) indicated the molecular weight distribution of whey protein hydrolysates ranged from 300 to 1400 Da, and most of whey peptide was under 1000 Da.