Identification of short peptide sequences in the nanofiltration permeate of a bioactive whey protein hydrolysate

•Nanofiltration (NF) was used to fractionate a whey protein hydrolysate (WPH).•HILIC and RP-UPLC peptide retention time models were employed.•This strategy allowed characterisation of short peptides within the NF permeate.•DPP-IV inhibitory activity was increased in the NF permeate compared to WPH.•VA, VL, WL and WI displayed DPP-IV IC50 values lower than 170 μM.

Short peptides in food protein hydrolysates are of significant interest as they may be highly bioactive whilst also being bioavailable. A dipeptidyl peptidase IV (DPP-IV) inhibitory whey protein hydrolysate (WPH) was fractionated using nanofiltration (NF) with a 200 Da MWCO membrane. The DPP-IV half maximal inhibitory concentration of the NF permeate (IC50 = 0.66 ± 0.08 mg protein equivalent mL− 1) was significantly more potent (P > 0.05) than that of the starting WPH (IC50 = 0.94 ± 0.24 mg protein equivalent mL− 1) and associated retentate (IC50 = 0.82 ± 0.13 mg protein equivalent mL− 1). This confirmed the contribution of short peptides within the NF permeate to the overall DPP-IV inhibitory activity. An hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography (HILIC-) and reverse-phase (RP-) liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC–MS/MS) strategy, based on two retention time models, allowed detection of eight free amino acids and eight di- to tetrapeptides in the NF permeate. The potential sequences of the peptides within the NF permeate were then ranked on the basis of their highest probability of occurrence. A confirmatory study with synthetic peptides showed that valine–alanine (VA), valine–leucine (VL), tryptophan–leucine (WL) and tryptophan–isoleucine (WI) displayed DPP-IV IC50 values < 170 μM. The NF and LC–MS strategies employed herein represent a new approach for the targeted identification of short peptides within bioactive food protein hydrolysates.