Zhang Hailing, Yang Yangxuan, Fan Yuting, Yi Jiang
Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Food Macromolecules Science and Processing, College of Chemistry and Environmental Engineering, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen 518060, China.
School of Public Health, Shenzhen University Medical School, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen 518060, China.
Foods. 2025 Jul 9;14(14):2418. doi: 10.3390/foods14142418.
The EGCG/PPN composite, prepared by combining pea protein nanofibrils (PPNs) with epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), could be used as a multifunctional nanocarrier. Compared to pea protein isolate (PPI), EGCG/PPN composites exhibited remarkably higher turbidity and zeta potential, along with similar UV spectra. Intrinsic fluorescence spectroscopy, ThT fluorescence spectroscopy, and surface hydrophobicity analysis suggested that the interactions between EGCG and PPN were primarily driven by hydrophobic forces. UV spectra indicated that the microenvironment of amino acid residues in the tertiary structure of the protein changes upon complexation, and circular dichroism (CD) revealed that the incorporation of EGCG increases the β-sheet content in the protein's secondary structure. Analyses of DPPH and ABTS radical scavenging activity, as well as reducing power, demonstrated that the synergistic effect between EGCG and PPN did not hinder the inherent antioxidant properties of EGCG but rather enhanced them significantly. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) images showed that the addition of EGCG reconstructed the fibril morphology, thereby affecting the properties of PPNs. Overall, the composite fabricated through the interaction between PPN and EGCG shows great potential as a nanocarrier in the processing of functional foods.
通过将豌豆蛋白纳米纤维（PPN）与表没食子儿茶素没食子酸酯（EGCG）结合制备的EGCG/PPN复合材料可作为多功能纳米载体。与豌豆分离蛋白（PPI）相比，EGCG/PPN复合材料表现出显著更高的浊度和zeta电位，以及相似的紫外光谱。内源荧光光谱、硫黄素T荧光光谱和表面疏水性分析表明，EGCG与PPN之间的相互作用主要由疏水力驱动。紫外光谱表明，蛋白质三级结构中氨基酸残基的微环境在络合时发生变化，圆二色性（CD）显示EGCG的掺入增加了蛋白质二级结构中的β-折叠含量。对DPPH和ABTS自由基清除活性以及还原力的分析表明，EGCG与PPN之间的协同作用并未阻碍EGCG固有的抗氧化性能，反而显著增强了这些性能。透射电子显微镜（TEM）图像显示，EGCG的添加重塑了纤维形态，从而影响了PPN的性能。总体而言，通过PPN与EGCG之间的相互作用制备的复合材料作为功能食品加工中的纳米载体具有巨大潜力。
