Effect of dry heating on physico-chemical, functional properties and digestibility of camel whey protein

Dry heating was successfully exploited to form camel whey protein (CWP) aggregates with improved solubility, emulsifying activity and thermal stability. The stable structures were established by rearrangement of primary structures and formation of disulphide bonds through dry heating, confirmed by sodium dodecylsulphate -polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and free thiol content determination. Solubility, emulsion and thermal stability of CWP increased after dry heating, which was attributed to the ζ-potential increase and the binding of residual lactose molecules to CWP molecules. The results of in vitro digestion revealed that large disulphidic aggregates formed during dry heating could be digested by simulated gastrointestinal fluid. In vitro digests of dry heated CWP showed higher antioxidant properties compared with native CWP. Our data suggest that dry heating could be considered as a valuable pre-treatment to produce the soluble and heat stable of CWP aggregates with improved functionality.