Exploring bioactive compounds in chickpea and bean aquafaba: Insights from glycomics and peptidomics analyses

The objective of this study was to identify bioactive oligosaccharides and peptides in the cooking water of chickpeas and common beans, known as aquafaba. The oligosaccharides stachyose, raffinose and verbascose were quantified by high-performance anion-exchange chromatography; 78 and 67 additional oligosaccharides were identified in chickpea and common bean aquafaba, respectively, by LC-MS/MS. Chickpea aquafaba uniquely harbored ciceritol and other methyl-inositol-containing oligosaccharides. In prebiotic growth assays, chickpea aquafaba oligosaccharides were differentially utilized, promoting growth of Limosilactobacillus reuteri DSM 20016 and Bifidobacterium longum subsp. infantis ATCC 15697, but not Lacticaseibacillus rhamnosus GG. Dimethyl labeling, along with LC-MS/MS, effectively differentiated α- and γ-glutamyl peptides, revealing the presence of several γ-glutamyl peptides known to possess kokumi and anti-inflammatory activities, including γ-Glu-Phe and γ-Glu-Tyr in chickpeas aquafaba and γ-Glu-S-methyl-Cys and γ-Glu-Leu in beans aquafaba. This work uncovered unique bioactive peptides and oligosaccharides in aquafaba, helping promote its valorization, food system sustainability, and future health-promoting claims.