Protein hydrolysates (PHs) have emerged as a pivotal category of plant biostimulants in sustainable agriculture. They are derived from the enzymatic, chemical, or thermal hydrolysis of agro-industrial by-products of animal or plant origin. These complex mixtures of free amino acids, oligopeptides, and polypeptides enhance crop productivity, nutrient use efficiency, and abiotic stress resilience. This review examines and compares the production methods, chemical composition, agronomic performance, physiological mechanism, and safety profiles of animal-derived (A-PHs) and vegetal-derived (V-PHs) protein hydrolysates, with particular emphasis on hydrolyzed collagen (HC) as an emerging biostimulant. Furthermore, the specific physiological roles of proline in mediating plant stress tolerance and hydroxyproline-rich glycoproteins in maintaining cell wall integrity are evaluated. Animal-derived sources, including collagen, keratin, and fish by-products, are characterized by elevated glycine, proline, and hydroxyproline concentrations, amino acids with established roles in root architecture promotion, reactive oxygen species (ROS) scavenging, and osmotic adjustment under stress. Conversely, V-PH exhibit richer bioactive peptide profiles and superior environmental sustainability indices. Underlying mechanisms encompass hormone-like activities mimicking auxin and gibberellin signaling, transcriptional reprogramming of nitrogen assimilation pathways, antioxidant enzyme modulation, and rhizosphere microbiota stimulation.
The growing demand for sustainable protein sources has intensified interest in plant-based food systems. Pulses are well established and recognized as nutritious, sustainable protein sources (~15–30% dry weight), rich in lysine and limited in cysteine, methionine, and tryptophan amino acids. In contrast, Spirulina is characterized by a complete amino acid profile, high protein content (~50–70% dry weight), and bioactive potential. This comprehensive review explores the role of Spirulina as a complementary protein source in plant-based systems, with emphasis on its structural, technofunctional, and processing characteristics. A literature analysis was conducted to identify advances, trends, and gaps in their incorporation into food matrices. The findings indicate that, despite their nutritional and functional advantages, the application of microalgae and beans remains constrained by sensory and technological challenges, such as off-flavors and textural issues. The combination of microalgae with pulse-based ingredients represents a promising strategy to enhance amino acid balance, improve functionality, and develop nutritionally enriched products. Studies addressing multi-component systems remain scarce, especially in bakery and flour-based applications, as well as in understanding synergistic interactions between microalgae and pulse proteins in food matrices. This review highlights the potential of microalgae as key ingredients in next-generation food formulations. It identifies critical gaps that must be addressed to enable their broader application in food products.
Plant-based protein hydrolysates (PBPHs) have garnered significant attention as natural emulsifiers in the food industry owing to their biocompatibility, sustainability, and potential to substitute synthetic surfactants. This review provides a comprehensive overview of the mechanisms, applications, and future directions of protein hydrolysates (PHs) as emulsifiers in food systems. The emulsifying properties of PHs are influenced by several factors, such as degree of hydrolysis, type of protein and enzyme used, pH, ionic strength, peptide molecular weight, solubility, particle size, and temperature. Several bioinformatics tools, including ExPASy Peptide Cutter, PSIPRED, COILS, Computed atlas of surface topography of proteins (CASTp), and Emulsipred, are currently used to predict emulsifying peptides based on their amphiphilic characteristics, interfacial properties and secondary structures. PBPHs derived from peanut, sunflower, sesame, soybean, rapeseed, rice bran, wheat bran, corn gluten meal, chickpea skin, potato peels, grape seed residues, and tomato pomace have been utilised as an emulsifier in various food applications, such as bioactive compound encapsulation, meat products, dairy products, mayonnaise, and packaging films. Emulsions stabilised by PHs exhibit improved physical and oxidative stability and enhanced shelf life. This review underscores the potential of PHs as a natural plant-based emulsifier in the food industry.
D. Padmapriya, C. Shanthi· Food science and technology...· 0 citations
This review explores the potential of plant-based agro-industrial by-products as sustainable protein sources. It examines how enzymatic hydrolysis can modify and enhance their techno-functional properties for food applications. A literature search (2020-2025) in major databases identified experimental studies using protein-rich by-products (≥10 g/100 g protein) processed into protein ingredients, concentrates, isolates, and, especially, hydrolysates. These by-products generally exhibit favorable amino acid profiles and notable bioactive properties, including antioxidant and enzyme-inhibitory activities. Hydrolysis, often combined with greener extraction and pretreatment technologies, improves key techno-functional properties. Reported surfactant-related effects include increased solubility, emulsifying, foaming, and oil-holding capacities. Moisturizing properties such as water-holding capacity, gelation, and texture are enhanced, while hydrodynamic behavior is tailored to improve colloidal stability. These functionalities have been successfully exploited in breads, cakes, yogurts, emulsified meat products, confectionery, encapsulated systems, and other model foods, enabling partial replacement of conventional ingredients such as eggs, milk solids, or synthetic surfactants. Despite these advances, most applications remain concentrated in bakery and dairy products, underscoring the need for broader exploration in other food matrices and for studies addressing scale-up, regulatory considerations, and consumer acceptance. Overall, plant protein hydrolysates derived from agro-industrial by-products are promising, sustainable ingredients for the development of functional, cleaner-label foods.
Isabelly de Campos Gonçalves Cabassa, M. Egea, Sibele Santos Fernandes· Critical reviews in food sci...· 0 citations
Chickpea is a protein-rich legume increasingly explored as a substrate for functional plant-based ingredients. Chickpea protein hydrolysates (CPHs) and chickpea-derived peptides (CPs), obtained through enzymatic hydrolysis or simulated gastrointestinal digestion, may provide technological and biological properties while supporting the valorization of chickpea fractions and by-products. This review integrates a network analysis of title–abstract terms from 5,728 unique Scopus and PubMed records on plant protein hydrolysates with a systematic review of 72 studies focused on CPH production, peptide characterization, bioactivity, and translational gaps. The evidence indicates that CPHs and CPs show promising antioxidant, antihypertensive, antidiabetic, anti-inflammatory, lipid-lowering, immunomodulatory, antimicrobial, and anticancer-related activities, mainly supported by biochemical assays, cell models, and animal studies. However, heterogeneous hydrolysis protocols, incomplete peptide characterization, inconsistent bioactivity methods, limited scale-up evidence, and the absence of human intervention trials restrict translation. Future studies should prioritize standardized protocols, mechanistic validation, bioavailability, sensory and regulatory assessment, food-matrix validation, and clinical trials.
N. M. Rodríguez-Martín, José Carlos Márquez-López, M. Fernández-Pachón et al.· Plant Foods for Human Nutrit...· 0 citations
This work explores the development of animal-free proteins produced in laboratory settings using innovative technologies such as precision fermentation, submerged fermentation, plant cell culture, and molecular engineering, which enable the production of high-quality proteins without relying on animal farming or large-scale traditional agriculture.
Key challenges remain, particularly digestive instability, uncertain systemic bioavailability, bitterness, safety standardization, and limited human clinical evidence, so future work should prioritize standardized extraction and analytical methods, optimized delivery systems, and robust clinical trials.
G. Kowalska, Gabriela Rzepkowska, Karolina Miśkiewicz et al.· Molecules· 1 citation
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