Buffalo whey proteins as innovative raw material for nanoparticles building

PABLO ALEJANDRO SOLIS CIZEK; GUSTAVO A. CRUDELI; DARIO SPELZINI; FRANCO VASILE

Caracas

Congreso; XIII BUFFALO WORLD CONGRESS; 2023

International Buffalo Federation

Buffalo whey is the most important byproduct of the cheese industry. Whey proteins are very interesting from a technological and economic point of view. In the presence of polysaccharides (PS), proteins (PR) are able to form complexes in the nanoscale. The study of PS and PR interactions constitutes a key aspect in the building of nanomaterials, particularly when the use of scarcely studied protein sources such as Buffalo (Bubalus bubalis) whey is pretended. In this sense, the objective of this work was to study the formation of biopolymeric structures by electrostatic interactions from buffalo whey proteins (BWPC) and arabic gum (GA). With this purpose, aqueous suspension containing BWPC (0.1% w/v) and GA (0.05% w/v) were prepared. For comparative purposes, the behavior of mixtures containing cow whey (WPC) and GA, as well as, of the single components were also studied. The pH of biopolymeric dispersions were adjusted in the range of 5.5 to 2.5 with HCl. The interactions were monitored through turbidimetric analysis (absorbance by spectrometry at 600 nm), zeta-potential and particle size distribution (by dynamic light scattering), and relative viscosity (in a Cannon-Fenske capillary viscometer). Analytical trials were performed at least in triplicate. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was performed to find statistical differences among samples. The level of significance was defined at p> 0.05 (interval of confidence of 95%). While GA suspensions did not show changes in the absorbance, both BWPC and WPC displayed a maximum between pH 4 and 4.5, attributable to their isoelectric points. Comparatively, mixtures of BWPC-GA and WPC-GA showed higher turbidity values than single-component suspensions (p0.05). Obtained results allow us to consider that BWPC can undergo associative interactions with GA resulting in soluble nano complexes with good colloidal stability useful for nutraceutical industry. The use of BWPC as nanostructures components, constitutes a promising alternative for adding value to this byproduct contributing not only to the economic benefit of dairy industries but also to minimizing the pollution effect of this effluent.