Dados do Trabalho

Título

COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF THE ANTIOXIDANT, ANTIDIABETIC AND ANTI-HYPERTENSIVE PROPERTIES OF HYDROLYSATES OBTAINED FROM INTEGRAL TENEBRIO MOLITOR FLOUR AND ITS PROTEIN CONCENTRATE

Introdução

Insects are considered an alternative source of proteins and have been studied in recent years as a substrate for enzymatic hydrolysis to obtain bioactive peptides. This study aimed to evaluate the production of hydrolysates with antioxidant, antidiabetic, and antihypertensive properties from mealworm (Tenebrio molitor) flour and mealworm protein concentrate.

Material e Métodos

For hydrolysis, an experimental design of mixtures was employed using the proteases Flavourzyme, Alcalase, and Neutrase that were applied singly and in binary/ternary combinations.

Resultados e Discussão

The content of soluble protein and free amino groups increased with hydrolysis and were dependent on the treatments applied. The highest antioxidant properties for mealworm flour hydrolysates were found in the control test, where the substrate remained non-hydrolyzed. In this sample, the scavenging activities of ABTS and DPPH radicals, as well as ferric reducing power (FRAP), were recorded as 284.79, 50.33, and 121.18 µmol TEq g-1, respectively. The mealworm protein concentrate hydrolysates treated with Flavourzyme exhibited the highest values for ABTS and DPPH radical scavenging activities, measuring 373.51 and 11.04 µmol TEq g-1, respectively. For mealworm flour hydrolysates, the most potent inhibitory effects for α-amylase, α-glucosidase, and angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) were achieved in samples produced using only Alcalase (19.88%), the ternary combination of proteases with a prevalence of Alcalase (15.36%), and the ternary combination of enzymes with a prevalence of Neutrase (57.04%), respectively. For the protein concentrate hydrolysates, the most effective inhibition activities against α-amylase, α-glucosidase, and ACE were achieved in the assay that applied only Alcalase (27.87%), the ternary combination of enzymes with a prevalence of Flavourzyme (17.36%), and the binary combination of Alcalase and Neutrase (54.60%), respectively. A significant (p < 0.05) and positive correlation was observed between the profiles of protein solubilization (R² > 0.96), free amino groups (R² > 0.94), antioxidant properties (R² > 0.87), and α-glucosidase activity inhibition (R² > 0.74) of the hydrolysates obtained from integral flour and of its protein concentrate. This fact indicated that the enzyme action was maintained, despite the differences in substrates composition.

Conclusão

The results showed that, in terms of the process, protein concentration is not essential for the production of hydrolysates with bioactive properties.