Project

Fibrils

Proposal for research topics for MSc students

Assembly of proteins into fibrils (fig. 1) which are aggregates with a length of 1 mm and a diameter of 1-10 nm has in the recent past gained attention in the field of food technology primarily because of the prospective utility in modifying the material properties of food products.

Figure 1: WPI Fibrils prepared at pH 2.0
Figure 1: WPI Fibrils prepared at pH 2.0

There are many reported examples of a fibril system. Due to their typical dimensions, addition of fibrils to food products results in an increase in viscosity, shear thinning behaviour and the formation of gels at relatively low protein concentration. Many food proteins have shown the ability to form fibrils, e.g. whey protein, ovalbumin, lysozyme and Bovine Serum Albumin. Gelatin is a very extreme type of fibril and forms very strong networks in which energy can be stored. E.g. winegums need large deformation and energy input to break them when eating. To make protein networks that also can store this high amount of energy, fibrils (made from different protein) are investigated for their gelling properties. Potential topics to explore in this field of research are:

1. Effect of additional charges in fibrils:- Changing the charges in fibrils has been shown to result in an influence on the mesh size as well as thickness of the network. In this research, the effect of introduction of additional charges in fibrils will be investigated. Different approaches will be used with an aim of inducing interactions within fibrils and other proteins and as a result, the energy stored within this systems will be investigated.

2. Alignment of fibrils by the use of centrifugation. In this research, alignment of fibrils will be carried out using the centrifugal method. Here fibrils will be prepared and then different centrifugation forces applied to the fibrils with an aim of aligning them in a unidirectional way as opposed to the random/overlapping conformation observed (fig.1).

3. Preparation of fibrils from other protein sources such as plant storage proteins (such as soy, pea and sunflower proteins) and exploring the energy stored in such networks especially when gelation is induced in this networks.