Advanced processes for engineering food protein amyloid fibrils: Molecular mechanisms, processing parameters, and...

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Biochemistry
• Food Science

Background:

• Food protein amyloid fibrils (PAFs) are highly ordered, stable nanostructures with potential in food systems and biomaterials.
• Conventional methods for PAF production are slow, energy-intensive, and offer limited structural control.

Purpose of the Study:

• To systematically review emerging processing technologies for PAF production.
• To investigate the molecular mechanisms, parameters, and structure-function relationships of these novel methods.

Main Methods:

• Review of recent advancements in processing technologies including high-pressure, ultrasonication, cold plasma, electric fields, ohmic/microwave heating, UV, RF, pH modulation, and enzymatic hydrolysis.
• Analysis of molecular mechanisms and structure-function interrelationships.

Main Results:

• Emerging technologies offer precise control over fibrillation kinetics, morphology, and functional performance of PAFs.
• These methods overcome limitations of conventional thermal acid-induced fibrillization.

Conclusions:

• Innovative processing routes enable optimized PAF production for advanced nanostructures.
• PAFs hold transformative potential for food, biomedical, and cross-industry applications.