Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
FOODBALT 2026 19th Baltic Conference on Food Science and Technology , Jelgava, Letonya, 14 - 15 Mayıs 2026, ss.50, (Özet Bildiri)
Dietary proteins are usually absorbed in the small intestine, with limited portion reaching large intestine; therefore, gut microorganisms compete for nitrogen. Maillard-type glycoconjugation between proteins and polysaccharide can increase resistance to gastrointestinal proteolysis, supplying more nitrogen to colon and potentially exerting a prebiotic effect. We therefore produced Maillard conjugates from zein and inulin (Z-In) or citrus pectin (Z-CP) and evaluated their physicochemical and prebiotic properties. Conjugates were produced by wet heating at 80 ℃ for 24 h under alkaline pH, then ultrafiltered and freeze-dried. Conjugation was confirmed by FT-IR, X-ray diffraction (XRD), and glycation degree (DG) analysis. Protein solubility was measured by the Biuret method, and prebiotic index (PI) was evaluated by cultivating Lacticaseibacillus paracasei and Limosilactobacillus fermentum in modified broths. Glycoconjugation was confirmed by FT-IR and XRD, with detection of notable changes in intensity and position of the main zein absorption bands. DG showed that reaction pH and polymer ratio influenced glycation efficiency; Z-CP conjugation at higher pH promoted greater DG (3244%). Although native zein has limited water solublity, conjugation improved solubility, particularly in Z-CP, where higher pH and DG yielded the
most hydrophilic conjugates. PI analysis indicated that all conjugates had positive prebiotic activity, supporting the growth of both strains; Z-In conjugates gave the highest PI of 1.231.49 for L. paracasei and 1.59 for L. fermentum, outperforming inulin (0.107-0.111). These preliminary results suggest that such conjugation can increase plant proteins' hydrophilicity and create a new prebiotic, but further research is needed on protein digestibility and gut microbiota effects.