A theoretical and experimental approach to evaluate zein-calcium interaction in nixtamalization process.

The possible interactions between α-zein and Ca2+ in nixtamalization process were analyzed from a multidisciplinary approach, considering the effect of these interactions on the thermal properties of the nixtamalized flour. SDS-PAGE under reducing and non-reducing conditions did not reveal differences between patterns of zeins from nixtamalized and control samples. However, analysis from affinity capillary electrophoresis indicated an increment in protein volume when calcium is added to zein extracted from nixtamalized flour. In addition, the binding constant for the zein-calcium interaction was calculated indicating a higher affinity for calcium by zein from nixtamalized samples. Molecular dynamics simulations indicated that the interaction α-zein-Ca2+ through C-ter was more favorable than Glu48. However, in excess of Ca2+ ions, each site could bind one calcium atom at the same time, confirming that aggregation of α-zein through calcium bridges is possible, expanding the technological applications of this protein.