Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 16, 2026

Budding Yeast Protein Extraction and Purification for the Study of Function, Interactions, and Post-translational Modifications
Published on: October 30, 2013
Colloid milling and microfluidization assisted by pH regulation improve the solubility and functional properties of
Juncheng Zhu1, Yan Zhang2, Ku Li2
1College of Food Science, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, PR China.
Abstract:
Yeast proteins (YP) are promising alternatives with high nutritional value, but poor solubility and limited functional properties restrict their applications. This study developed a pH-assisted dual-physical processing integrating colloid milling and microfluidization to improve their solubility and functional properties of YP. The treatment remarkably increased YP solubility (90.34 ± 1.05%) and soluble protein ratios (92.49 ± 0.89%), and conferred excellent dispersibility and colloidal stability. Mechanistically, the treatment induced structural unfolding and disulfide bond cleavage, altering secondary and tertiary structures and promoting dissociation of aggregates and partial fragmentation. Structural dissociation and degradation exposed buried charged residues, shifting zeta potential from -23.23 to -32.77 mV and enhancing electrostatic repulsion. The increased surface hydrophobicity, coupled with the decreased particle size and enhanced solubility, synergistically improved the emulsifying and foaming properties, oil-holding capacity, and in vitro digestibility (∼90%). This study provides a scalable processing strategy with industrial potential to enhance YP solubility and functional properties, facilitating their widespread application.
Related Concept Videos
Bioreactor Controls-III
Microbes in Food Production
Production of Alcohol
Yeast Signaling
Colloidal precipitates
The Colloidal State

