摘要：Whey protein fractions represents 18-20% of total milk nitrogen content. β-lactoglobulin is the major milk serum protein, while α-lactalbumin represents about 20% of total serum proteins or 2-5% of total milk nitrogen content. Whey proteins are highly susceptible to heat-induced denaturation; irreversibly denature and coagulate when exposed to high temperatures. Thermal treatment causes interaction between milk proteins, especially the interaction of α-lactalbumin, β-lactoglobulin and κ-casein. Complexes between them are known as coaggregates. Since the early 1980s, whey proteins have grown in popularity as nutritional and functional food ingredients. Serum proteins possess favorable functional characteristics such as gelling, water binding, emulsification and foaming ability. Due to the use of membrane fractionation techniques, it is possible to produce various whey-protein based products. The most important products based on the whey proteins are whey protein concentrate (WPC), whey protein isolate (WPI) and hydrolyzed whey protein (HWP). This review discusses the properties of major whey protein components and their possible use in dairy industry.
关键词：whey proteins; functional properties; high heat treatment
