posted on 2023-05-03, 17:53authored byThérèse Considine, John Flanagan, Simon Loveday, Ashling Ellis
Milk proteins can interact with micronutrients via a variety of mechanisms, with hydrophobic interactions being of particular importance. This chapter focuses on the interactions of milk proteins with a range of micronutrients, including vitamins, minerals, fatty acids, and sugars. Research in the past decade has shown that milk proteins can be used as micronutrient carriers in foods, thereby increasing the nutritional benefit of milk and milk-based products. It is this potential that has pushed research in the area forward in recent years, broadening our knowledge of the interactions and ways to maximize them.
It is widely known that the processing of milk proteins via heat or high pressure can result in modification of the protein structure, resulting in altered interactions between proteins and micronutrients. Interestingly, the presence of some micronutrients can retard the denaturation of some milk proteins. The addition of specific micronutrients may therefore be used as a processing tool to prevent the denaturation of milk proteins under physical conditions that normally result in denaturation.
Considine, T., Flanagan, J., Loveday, S. M., & Ellis, A. (2020). Interaction between milk proteins and micronutrients. In M. Boland & H. Singh (Eds.), Milk proteins: From expression to food (pp. 537–571). Elsevier. doi:10.1016/B978-0-12-815251-5.00014-1