Enzymatic preparation and antioxidant activities of protein hydrolysates derived from tuna byproducts

This study aims to investigate the production and characteristics of protein hydrolysates derived from tuna byproducts (TP) using various proteolytic enzymes and to compare the antioxidant activity of the resulting hydrolysates. The TP were subjected to enzymatic hydrolysis using five different proteases: alcalase, bromelain, flavourzyme, neutrase, and papain, and the antioxidant activities of the hydrolysates were evaluated. Subsequent analysis of the available amino group contents and sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis patterns indicated a high degree of hydrolysis in TP after treatment with all the enzymes, except for papain. Based on the RC50 values obtained from four different antioxidant analyses, all the hydrolysates exhibited similar antioxidant activity, except for the flavourzyme hydrolysate, which showed significantly higher scavenging activity against ABTS radicals and hydrogen peroxide than the other hydrolysates. These findings suggest that protein hydrolysates derived from TP hold promise as potential sources of natural antioxidants.