Development of a LC-MS/MS method for the determination of isomeric glutamyl peptides in food ingredients.

A liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry method was developed for the determination of 27 glutamyl di- and tripeptides in food ingredients. Such compounds are of importance for the food industry, as they can modulate the perception of basic tastes (sweet, salty, and umami). Due to their high polarity, the hydrophilic interaction chromatography mode was selected to have sufficient retention on the column and the best separation was obtained on an amide hybrid silica stationary phase packed with 1.7 µm particles. Thorough optimization of the mobile phase was performed as the start-composition had to be free of ammonium to avoid on-column cis-trans isomerization of the first eluting proline dipeptide. A baseline separation was achieved for all α and γ isomers whereas only a partial resolution was obtained for γ-Glu-Leu and γ-Glu-Ile, for which only the position of a methyl group differs. A fast sample preparation, based on successive dilutions, was performed before injection into the liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry system. The developed method was then applied for the semi-quantification of glutamyl di- and tri-peptides in four different food ingredients. The methodology will further support the optimization of production processes to select the conditions for which the peptide concentrations would be the highest.

Analysis of Umami Taste Compounds in a Fermented Corn Sauce by Means of Sensory-Guided Fractionation.

Corn sauce, an ingredient obtained from the fermentation of enzymatically hydrolyzed corn starch and used in culinary applications to provide savory taste, was investigated in this study. The links between its sensory properties and taste compounds were assessed using a combination of analytical and sensory approaches. The analyses revealed that glutamic acid, sodium chloride, and acetic acid were the most abundant compounds, but they could not explain entirely the savory taste. The addition of other compounds, found at subthreshold concentrations (alanine, glutamyl peptides, and one Amadori compound), contributed partly to close the sensory gap between the re-engineered sample and the original product. Further chemical breakdown, by a sensory-guided fractionation approach, led to the isolation of two fractions with taste-modulating effects. Analyses by mass spectrometry and nuclear magnetic resonance showed that the fractions contained glutamyl peptides, pyroglutamic acid, glutamic acid, valine, N-formyl-glutamic acid, and N-acetyl-glutamine.

Encapsulation performance of proteins and traditional materials for spray dried flavors.

The objective of this study was to evaluate the potential of selected proteins as alternative materials for flavor encapsulation by spray drying. Two traditional materials (gum acacia and modified starch) and three proteins (sodium caseinate, whey and soy protein isolates) were used at different infeed solid levels; test compounds included (R)-(+)-limonene and three alpha,beta-unsaturated aldehydes ((E)-2-hexenal, (E)-cinnamaldehyde, citral). The primary criteria for performance were flavor retention during drying and protection against losses during storage. Limonene oxidation and nonenzymatic browning were investigated as two possible deterioration routes. Overall, higher infeed solids improved retention during drying and limited flavor losses (aldehydes and limonene) during storage in traditional materials only. The materials giving the highest flavor retention during drying were gum acacia (94%), modified starch (88%) and whey protein isolate (87%). Gum acacia provided the highest retention of aldehydes during storage (37 to 58%) after 28 days at 40 degrees C but did not afford good protection against limonene oxidation. Oppositely, protein materials effectively limited limonene oxidation (>70% retained). Nonenzymatic browning was observed for all powders prepared with proteins, especially whey protein isolate, whereas no browning occurred with traditional materials.