The Bioactivity Prediction of Peptides from Tuna Skin Collagen Using Integrated Method Combining In Vitro and In Silico

Bioprospecting Bioactive Peptides in Halobatrachus didactylus Body Mucus: From In Silico Insights to Essential In Vitro Validation

Fish body mucus plays a protective role, especially in Halobatrachus didactylus, which inhabits intertidal zones vulnerable to anthropogenic contaminants. In silico predicted bioactive peptides were identified in its body mucus, namely, EDNSELGQETPTLR (HdKTLR), DPPNPKNL (HdKNL), PAPPPPPP (HdPPP), VYPFPGPLPN (HdVLPN), and PFPGPLPN (HdLPN). These peptides were studied in vitro for bioactivities and aggregation behavior under different ionic strengths and pH values. Size exclusion chromatography revealed significant peptide aggregation at 344 mM and 700 mM ionic strengths at pH 7.0, decreasing at pH 3.0 and pH 5.0. Although none exhibited antimicrobial properties, they inhibited Pseudomonas aeruginosa biofilm formation. Notably, HdVLPN demonstrated potential antioxidant activity (ORAC: 1.560 μmol TE/μmol of peptide; ABTS: 1.755 μmol TE/μmol of peptide) as well as HdLPN (ORAC: 0.195 μmol TE/μmol of peptide; ABTS: 0.128 μmol TE/μmol of peptide). Antioxidant activity decreased at pH 5.0 and pH 3.0. Interactions between the peptides and mucus synergistically enhanced antioxidant effects. HdVLPN and HdLPN were non-toxic to Caco-2 and HaCaT cells at 100 μg of peptide/mL. HdPPP showed potential antihypertensive and antidiabetic effects, with IC50 values of 557 μg of peptide/mL for ACE inhibition and 1700 μg of peptide/mL for α-glucosidase inhibition. This study highlights the importance of validating peptide bioactivities in vitro, considering their native environment (mucus), and bioprospecting novel bioactive molecules while promoting species conservation.

Characteristics and food applications of aquatic collagen and its derivatives: A review

Collagen and its hydrolysates have high bioavailability, good biocompatibility, biodegradability, and biological activity which has meant that they have been widely used in food, medicine, cosmetics, and other industries. Although the properties and applications of collagen have been reviewed recently, few studies have focused on aquatic collagen. To provide readers with a deeper understanding of aquatic collagen, this review addresses the structure and properties of aquatic collagen and compares them with mammalian collagen, as well as the differences between collagen, gelatin, and collagen peptides. In contrast to mammalian collagen, aquatic collagen prevents zoonotic diseases, reduces environmental pollution, improves the utilization of aquatic resources, and facilitates the extraction and separation of active oligopeptides. Additionally, methods for screening functional peptides using in vitro digestion have been introduced. Finally, the review focuses on the applications of collagen and its derivatives in food preservation (packaging films, coatings, additives, and antifreeze peptides), drug delivery (microcapsules, emulsions, nanoparticles, and hydrogels), nutrition, and healthcare.

Optimal and sustainable production of tailored fish protein hydrolysates from tuna canning wastes and discarded blue whiting: Effect of protein molecular weight on chemical and bioactive properties

Thousands tons of discards of blue whiting (BW) and tuna heads (YT) by-products are generated each year in Europe. BW is the species most discarded by European fishing fleet and, in some canning factories, YT are processed for the retrieval of oil rich in omega-3, but producing a huge amount of solid remains and effluents disposal as wastes. The development of optimal and sustainable processes for both substrates is mandatory in order to reach clean solutions under the circular economy precepts. This work focused on the mathematical optimization of the production of tailored fish protein hydrolysates (FPH), from blue whiting and tuna residues, in terms of controlling average molecular weights (Mw) of proteins. For the modeling of the protein depolymerization time-course, a pseudo-mechanistic model was used, which combined a reaction mechanistic equation affected, in the kinetic parameters, by two non-lineal equations (a first-order kinetic and like-Weibull formulae). In all situations, experimental data were accurately simulated by that model achieving R2 values higher than 0.96. The validity of the experimental conditions obtained from modeling were confirmed performing productions of FPH at scale of 5 L-reactor, without pH-control in most of cases, at the different ranges of Mw selected (1-2 kDa, 2-5 kDa and 5-10 kDa). The results showed that FPH from BW with lower Mw led to a remarkable yield of production (12 % w/w of substrate), largest protein contents (77 % w/w of BW hydrolysate), greatest in vitro digestibility (>95 %), highest essential amino acid presence (43 %) and the best antioxidant (DPPH = 62 %) and antihypertensive (IC50-ACE = 80 mg/L) properties. Our results prove that the proposed procedure to produce sustainable FPH, with specific Mw characterisitics, could be extended to other fish waste substrates. Tailored FPH may have the potential to serve as valuable ingredients for functional foods and high-quality aquaculture feed.

Improving the Sustainability of Processing By-Products: Extraction and Recent Biological Activities of Collagen Peptides

Society and consumers are increasingly concerned about food safety and the sustainability of food production systems. A significant amount of by-products and discards are generated during the processing of aquatic animals, which still needs to be fully utilized by the food industry. The management and sustainable use of these resources are essential to avoiding environmental pollution and resource waste. These by-products are rich in biologically active proteins, which can be converted into peptides by enzymatic hydrolysis or fermentation treatment. Therefore, exploring the extraction of collagen peptides from these by-products using an enzymatic hydrolysis technology has attracted a wide range of attention from numerous researchers. Collagen peptides have been found to possess multiple biological activities, including antioxidant, anticancer, antitumor, hypotensive, hypoglycemic, and anti-inflammatory properties. These properties can enhance the physiological functions of organisms and make collagen peptides useful as ingredients in food, pharmaceuticals, or cosmetics. This paper reviews the general methods for extracting collagen peptides from various processing by-products of aquatic animals, including fish skin, scales, bones, and offal. It also summarizes the functional activities of collagen peptides as well as their applications.

Molecular Docking Revealed the Potential Anti-Oxidative Stress Mechanism of the Walnut Polypeptide on HT22 Cells

The preparation of novel antioxidant peptides from food raw materials is one of the research focuses, but there are fewer studies on the preparation of antioxidant peptides from walnut meal, a by-product of processing walnuts. This study analyzed the antioxidant properties and protective effects of walnut protein hydrolyzed by alkaline protease and trypsin on the oxidative stress of HT22 cells. The peptides were identified by UPLC-MS/MS, and the anti-oxidative peptides were screened based on virtual computer tools. The potential anti-oxidative stress mechanism of the walnut polypeptide on HT22 cells was explored by molecular docking. The results revealed that walnut protein hydrolysates (WPH) with molecular weights of less than 1 kDa had good antioxidant properties and inhibited oxidative damage of HT22 cells by regulating the levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and antioxidant enzyme catalase (CAT), superoxide dismutase (SOD), and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px). Six of the ninety identified new peptides showed good solubility, non-toxicity, and bioactivity. The molecular docking results showed that the six peptides could dock with Keap1 successfully, and EYWNR and FQLPR (single-letter forms of peptide writing) could interact with the binding site of Nrf2 in the Keap1-Kelch structural domain through hydrogen bonds with strong binding forces. The results of this study provided important information on the antioxidant molecular mechanism of the walnut polypeptide and provided a basis for further development of walnut antioxidant polypeptide products.

In Silico Methodologies to Improve Antioxidants' Characterization from Marine Organisms

Marine organisms have been reported to be valuable sources of bioactive molecules that have found applications in different industrial fields. From organism sampling to the identification and bioactivity characterization of a specific compound, different steps are necessary, which are time- and cost-consuming. Thanks to the advent of the -omic era, numerous genome, metagenome, transcriptome, metatranscriptome, proteome and microbiome data have been reported and deposited in public databases. These advancements have been fundamental for the development of in silico strategies for basic and applied research. In silico studies represent a convenient and efficient approach to the bioactivity prediction of known and newly identified marine molecules, reducing the time and costs of "wet-lab" experiments. This review focuses on in silico approaches applied to bioactive molecule discoveries from marine organisms. When available, validation studies reporting a bioactivity assay to confirm the presence of an antioxidant molecule or enzyme are reported, as well. Overall, this review suggests that in silico approaches can offer a valuable alternative to most expensive approaches and proposes them as a little explored field in which to invest.

Purification and Identification of Novel Myeloperoxidase Inhibitory Antioxidant Peptides from Tuna (Thunnas albacares) Protein Hydrolysates

Antioxidative peptides that inhibit myeloperoxidase (MPO) enzyme activity can effectively defend against oxidative stress damage. The antioxidant peptides from tuna protein were produced using alcalase hydrolysis and purified by ultrafiltration and Sephadex G-15, and the fractions with the highest free radicals scavenging ability and oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC) values were sequenced using HPLC–MS/MS. Fifty-five peptide sequences were identified, 53 of which were successfully docked into MPO. The representative peptide ACGSDGK had better antioxidant activity and inhibition of MPO chlorination and peroxidation than the reference peptide hLF1-11. The docking model further showed intense molecular interactions between ACGSDGK and MPO, including hydrogen bonds, charge, and salt bridge interactions, which occluded the active site and blocked the catalytic activity of MPO. These results suggested that the antioxidant peptide ACGSDGK has the potential to inhibit oxidative stress and alleviate inflammation in vivo because of its inhibitory effect on the MPO enzyme.