Edible insect as an alternative protein source: a review on the chemistry and functionalities of proteins under different processing methods
Lucas Sales Queiroz,
Naaman Francisco Nogueira Silva,
Flemming Jessen,
Mohammad Amin Mohammadifar,
Rodrigo Stephani,
Antonio Fernandes de Carvalho,
Ítalo Tuler Perrone,
Federico Casanova
Affiliations
Lucas Sales Queiroz
Departamento de Tecnologia de Alimentos, Universidade Federal de Viçosa (UFV), 36570-900, Viçosa, Minas Gerais, Brazil; Research Group for Food Production Engineering, National Food Institute, Technical University of Denmark, Søltofts Plads, 2800, Kongens Lyngby, Denmark; Corresponding author. Departamento de Tecnologia de Alimentos, Universidade Federal de Viçosa (UFV), 36570-900, Viçosa, Minas Gerais, Brazil.
Naaman Francisco Nogueira Silva
Centro de Ciências da Natureza, Universidade Federal de Sao Carlos (UFSCar), 18245-000, Buri, São Paulo, Brazil
Flemming Jessen
Research Group for Food Production Engineering, National Food Institute, Technical University of Denmark, Søltofts Plads, 2800, Kongens Lyngby, Denmark
Mohammad Amin Mohammadifar
Research Group for Food Production Engineering, National Food Institute, Technical University of Denmark, Søltofts Plads, 2800, Kongens Lyngby, Denmark
Rodrigo Stephani
Departamento de Química, Universidade Federal de Juiz de Fora, 36036-330, Juiz de Fora – MG, Brazil
Antonio Fernandes de Carvalho
Departamento de Tecnologia de Alimentos, Universidade Federal de Viçosa (UFV), 36570-900, Viçosa, Minas Gerais, Brazil
Ítalo Tuler Perrone
Departamento de Ciências Farmacêuticas, Universidade Federal de Juiz de Fora, 36036-330, Juiz de Fora – MG, Brazil
Federico Casanova
Research Group for Food Production Engineering, National Food Institute, Technical University of Denmark, Søltofts Plads, 2800, Kongens Lyngby, Denmark; Corresponding author.
The consumption of edible insects can be anadvantageous alternative to the conventional food supply chain, which involves global water waste, land deficit, undernutrition, and starvation. Besides the nutritional aspects, insect proteins have demonstrated a wide range of functional properties such as foamability, emulsifying and gelling abilities. The protein content and amino acid profile of some insects have revealed a good nutritional value and interesting functional properties. However, it is crucial to comprehend how the protein quality is affected by insect feeding, drying, and defatting. There is a knowledge gap about the impact of industrial treatment, such as pH, ionic strength, and heat treatment, on insect proteins' functional properties. In this review, we have aimed to highlight the potential application of insect proteins as a nutritional source and their promising technological applications. The study reported the principal insect protein characterization methodologies that have been investigated in the literature aiming to correlate the physicochemical parameters to possible protein functionalities. The research on the functional properties of insect proteins is at the exploratory level. Further detailed studies are needed to clarify the structure-function relation of insect proteins and how these functionalities and insect processing can increase consumer acceptance.
