Insights into peptide profiling of sturgeon myofibrillar proteins with low temperature vacuum heating

Abstract BACKGROUND Protein oxidation during food processing causes changes in the balance of protein–molecular interactions and protein–water interactions, ultimately leading to protein denaturation, which results in the loss of a range of functional properties. Therefore, how to control the oxidative modification of proteins during processing has been the focus of research. RESULTS In the present study, the intrinsic fluorescence value of the myofibrillar proteins (MP) decreased and the surface hydrophobicity value increased, indicating that the heat treatment caused a significant change in the conformation of the MP. With an increase in heating temperature, protein carbonyl content increased, total sulfhydryl content decreased, and protein secondary structure changed from α ‐helix to β ‐sheet, indicating that protein oxidation and aggregation occurred. Sodium dodecyl sulfate‐polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis revealed that heat treatment can lead to the degradation of proteins, especially myosin heavy chain, although actin had a certain thermal stability. In total, 733 proteins were identified by proteomics, and the protein oxidation caused by low temperature vacuum heating (LTVH) was determined to be mild oxidation dominated by malondialdehyde and 4‐hydroxynonenal by oxidation site division. CONCLUSION The present study has revealed the effect of LTVH treatment on the protein oxidation modification behavior of sturgeon meat, and explored the effect mechanism of LTVH treatment on the processing quality of sturgeon meat from the perspective of protein oxidation. The results may provide a theoretical basis for the precise processing of aquatic products. © 2023 Society of Chemical Industry.