Whey protein mouth drying influenced by thermal denaturation

Abstract

Whey proteins are becoming an increasingly popular functional food ingredient. There are, however, sensory properties associated with whey protein beverages that may hinder the consumption of quantities sufficient to gain the desired nutritional benefits. One such property is mouth drying. The influence of protein structure on the mouthfeel properties of milk proteins has been previously reported. This paper investigates the effect of thermal denaturation of whey proteins on physicochemical properties (viscosity, particle size, zeta-potential, pH), and relates this to the observed sensory properties measured by qualitative descriptive analysis and sequential profiling. Mouthcoating, drying and chalky attributes built up over repeated consumption, with higher intensities for samples subjected to longer heating times (p < 0.05). Viscosity, pH, and zeta-potential were found to be similar for all samples, however particle size increased with longer heating times. As the pH of all samples was close to neutral, this implies that neither the precipitation of whey proteins at low pH, nor their acidity, as reported in previous literature, can be the drying mechanisms in this case. The increase in mouth drying with increased heating time suggests that protein denaturation is a contributing factor and a possible mucoadhesive mechanism is discussed.

Viscosity drives texture perception of protein beverages more than hydrocolloid type

“…Recently, mucoadhesion has been implicated in the oral‐tactile sensation of astringency (Bull et al, ). In the present study, astringency correlated with mouthcoating, viscosity (50 s −1 ), and residual mouthcoating in the WMP system.…”

“…In addition to influencing taste and texture perception, mucoadhesion is also reported to play a role in the oral‐tactile perception of astringency or mouthdrying. Whey protein solutions heated for longer times (and thus a greater extent of protein aggregation and a concomitant increase in mean particle size) are perceived as being more astringent with a higher degree of mouthcoating (Bull et al, ). The mouthfeel, flavor, and taste in a model savory sauce depend on the type of thickener (Ferry et al, ).…”

Food texture and sweetener type modify sweetness perception in whey protein‐based model foods

“…Astringency in whey protein fluids is typically associated with low pH but can also be a problem at high protein concentrations and neutral pH due to mucoadhesion (Beecher et al, ; Withers et al, ). Moreover, longer heating of whey proteins is reported to increase astringency and mouthcoating (Bull et al, ). At pH 6.9 and 11% wt/wt protein, astringency of the samples in this study could be explained by these mechanisms.…”

Polysaccharide food matrices for controlling the release, retention and perception of flavours

“…Specifically, interactions between flavour molecules and the oral mucosa may explain persistence of aromas in certain foods (Esteban-Fernández, Rocha-Alcubilla, Muñoz-González, Moreno-Arribas, & Pozo-Bayón, 2016;Sánchez-López, Ziere, Martins, Zimmermann, & Yeretzian, 2016). Furthermore, interactions between food matrices and the oral mucosa have been of interest with regard to negative sensory characteristics of dairy products (Bull et al, 2015;Hilal Y et al, 2015;Withers, Cook, Methven, Godney, & Khutoryanskiy, 2013) and the impact of fat reduction on perception of foods (De Hoog, Prinz, Huntjens, Dresselhuis, & Van Aken, 2006;Dresselhuis, van Aken, de Hoog, & Martien, 2008).…”

“…Many polysaccharides are mucoadhesive, meaning they adhere to mucosal surfaces in the body via intermolecular forces (hydrogen bonding, electrostatic attraction, hydrophobic interactions and covalent bonds) and physical penetration and entanglement of polymer chains (Andrews, Laverty, & Jones, 2009;Huang, Leobandung, Foss, & Peppas, 2000;Jabbari, Wisniewski, & Peppas, 1993). Though this phenomenon has been of interest and well utilised in the pharmaceutics field for decades, the importance in the food industry is beginning to gain interest (Bull et al, 2015;S. L. Cook, Bull, et al, 2017;S.…”