Hydrophobins: Exceptional proteins for many applications in brewery environment and other bio-industries

Abstract

Hydrophobins are exceptional proteins produced by fungi. Research over the last decade has led to a better understanding of their role in spontaneous self-assembly at hydrophobic/hydrophilic interfaces. This has resulted in many proposals for using hydrophobins in many important scientific and technological applications. Hydrophobins may become attractive as special biosurfactants, as foaming agents and for protein immobilization in the food industries and in biosensors. Moreover, they can be interesting as stabilizers for flavors, and as, encapsulating agents of trace ingredients in beverages. The use of hydrophobins in pharmaceutical formulations and in medicine is another interesting application as they cause an increased stabilization of drugs. The study of hydrophobins must also lead to a better understanding of the gushing phenomenon in beverages like beers, wines and ciders, which causes great economic losses in those fields. To recognize the positive and the negative aspects of hydrophobins these proteins should be commercially available at large scale which however is not the case. An overview of existing possibilities for applications may help to understand their behavior in different environmental conditions and to stimulate finding improved methods for isolation and purification, and possibly other unexpected applications.