Immobilization of Enzymes for Enhanced Production of Protein Hydrolysate and Lactose Free Products from Whey

A challenge in the production of dairy-derived hydrolysate products is efficiently generating a high- yield and in the case of peptides specific and active material. Enzymes enable the use of mildreaction conditions and processing techniques compared to standard chemical methods. Howeverthe use of commercial enzymes and enzyme mixes presents its own challenges. High qualitycommercial enzyme products are expensive for a single use and some enzymes can produceallergic or toxic responses if left in products. Extensive purification steps after enzyme reactionsadds to production expenditures. A potential method to control process costs is to immobilize theenzymes enabling enzyme recovery and reuse.The aim of the project is to demonstrate the capabilities of immobilized enzymes for the processingof whey products compared to their soluble enzyme counterparts. Our patented immobilizationtechnology will be applied to two commercial protease mixes Alcalase and Protamex and to beta- galactosidase (lactase); converting them from one-time use catalysts to reusable materials. Theiractivity across pH and temperature conditions and capability to retain enzymatic activity overextended use will be determined. Test results from Phase I will validate immobilized enzymes as areplacement for current materials through: 1) a similar reactive capacity vs. soluble enzyme 2)extended enzymatic stability under defined reaction conditions 3) retaining enzyme activityfollowing standard clean in place protocols 4) resistance to microbial growth 5) ease of separationfrom reaction products and 6) minimal to no enzyme leaching into reaction solutions.