Physicochemical and antioxidant properties of Maillard reaction products formed by heating whey protein isolate and reducing sugars

This study was conducted to investigate the physicochemical and antioxidant properties of Maillard reaction products ( MRP ) prepared by heating whey protein isolate ( WPI ) and reducing sugars (glucose and galactose) to 95 °C for different lengths of time (0–6 h). The results revealed that the colour, intermediate products, browning intensity and the antioxidant activities of the MRP increased as the reaction time increased ( P < 0.05), whereas the pH value and free amino group content decreased ( P < 0.05). Sodium dodecyl sulphate–polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis indicated that the covalently linked conjugates of WPI and sugars were formed. The results indicate that the Maillard reaction could improve the antioxidant capacity of WPI .