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Updated: Aug 15, 2026

Evaluation of Protein–Protein Interactions using an On-Membrane Digestion Technique
07:07

Evaluation of Protein–Protein Interactions using an On-Membrane Digestion Technique

Published on: July 19, 2019

High-pressure homogenization improves mycoprotein digestibility under an elderly static in vitro digestion model by

Yifei Gao1, Chengpu Chen1, Dan Yang1

  • 1State Key Laboratory of Meat Quality Control and Cultured Meat Development, Jiangsu Collaborative Innovation Center of Meat Production and Processing, Quality and Safety Control, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing 210095, China. yekeping.arc@163.com.

Food & Function
|August 14, 2026
PubMed

Insights

High-pressure homogenization improves mycoprotein digestion for elderly diets. This treatment enhances structural breakdown and amino acid release, making mycoprotein a more digestible protein source.

Area of Science:

  • Food Science
  • Biotechnology
  • Nutritional Science

Background:

  • Mycoprotein offers a balanced amino acid profile beneficial for muscle maintenance in the elderly.
  • Rigid fungal cell walls and hyphal networks in mycoprotein can limit enzymatic accessibility during digestion.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate high-pressure homogenization (HPH) as a strategy to enhance the digestive adaptability of mycoprotein for elderly consumption.
  • To compare the in vitro digestion of HPH-treated mycoprotein with native mycoprotein, pork, and plant-based meat under simulated elderly digestive conditions.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized a static in vitro oral-gastric-intestinal digestion model simulating elderly physiological conditions.
  • Analyzed structural disintegration, hydrolysis, free amino acid release, light scattering, and microrheological properties.
  • Compared native mycoprotein (MYC), HPH-treated mycoprotein (HMYC), pork (PORK), and plant-based meat (PLANT).

Main Results:

  • HPH significantly disrupted mycoprotein's structure, improving enzyme accessibility and digestion-induced disintegration.
  • HPH-treated mycoprotein showed over 80% decrease in particle size D[4,3] during digestion, indicating enhanced breakdown.
  • HPH-treated mycoprotein exhibited higher hydrolysis and free amino acid release, approaching pork levels and surpassing native mycoprotein and plant-based meat.

Conclusions:

  • High-pressure homogenization effectively improves mycoprotein's digestive adaptability for elderly physiological conditions.
  • HPH treatment makes mycoprotein's digestion behavior more similar to pork.
  • Findings support the development of elderly-friendly high-protein foods using HPH-treated mycoprotein.

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