Effect of high pressure treatment on aggregation and structural properties of soy protein isolate

The aggregation and structural properties of soy protein isolate (SPI), induced by high pressure (HP) treatment at 200–600 MPa were investigated by size-exclusion chromatography combined with multi-angle laser scattering (SEC-MALLS) and fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. HP treatment at lower pressure level (e.g., 200 MPa) resulted in formation of marked insoluble aggregate of SPI, while the treatment at higher pressure level (e.g., 600 MPa) led to transformation of insoluble aggregate to soluble one. The soluble aggregate formed at 400 or 600 MPa had much less mean molecular weight (MW) (about 5.2 × 106 g/mol) than that at 200 MPa (about 1.6 × 107 g/mol), and was also much more homogenous in MW distribution. FTIR analyses confirmed changes in secondary and tertiary structures, induced by HP treatment. These results can provide direct evidence or explanation for HP-induced modification of soy proteins.