The optimization of production and characterization of antioxidant peptides from protein hydrolysates of Agrocybe aegerita

Abstract Oxidative stress caused by the excess of radical oxygen species (ROS) could lead to many kinds of human diseases. Antioxidant peptides, a kind of natural antioxidants, have attracted much attention for their low toxicities and strong antioxidant activities. Food proteins can be regarded as good materials for the production of antioxidant peptides by enzymatic hydrolysis. In this work, we aimed to find novel natural antioxidant peptides derived from Agrocybe aegerita proteins by enzymatic hydrolysis. The method of response surface methodology (RSM) was adopted for optimizing the hydrolysis parameters. Under the optimal condition, antioxidant peptides of Agrocybe aegerita were separated and sequenced. Finally, twenty-five novel antioxidant peptides with high antioxidant scores were identified. These results suggest that the hydrolysates of Agrocybe aegerita proteins could be used as natural antioxidants in functional foods and food processing.