Assessment of the residual immunoreactivity of soybean whey hydrolysates obtained by combined enzymatic proteolysis and high pressure

Soybean (Glycine max) whey was hydrolyzed for 15 min using three food-grade proteases (Alcalase, Neutrase, Corolase PN-L) at atmospheric pressure (0.1 MPa) and under high pressure (HP) at 100, 200, and 300 MPa. All hydrolysates were analyzed by SDS-PAGE and their residual immunoreactivity was assessed by immunoblotting using the sera from children allergic to soybean. As shown in SDS-PAGE, Alcalase, Neutrase, and Corolase PN-L produced different patterns of hydrolysis. Each enzyme showed a similar proteolytic activity at atmospheric pressure and at 100 MPa, while an increased degree of hydrolysis was observed at 200 and 300 MPa. No residual antigenicity was observed in the hydrolysates obtained by Alcalase and Corolase PN-L in all considered conditions of hydrolysis. A positive reaction associated with a band having molecular weight of about 70 kDa was observed in the immunoblotting of the hydrolysates obtained with Neutrase at 0.1, 100, and 200 MPa, while no antigenicity was detected for those samples obtained under high pressure, at 300 MPa. These results suggest that high pressure combined with suitable enzymatic activity could be a useful tool for obtaining hydrolysates with low immunoreactivity to be used in special foods (hypoallergenic foods).