Structure and dynamics of ovalbumin gels

Solvent effects on dynamical and thermal behaviors of ovalbumin (OVA) gels induced by thermal denaturation at high temperature of 160°C were studied from dynamic shear modulus measurement, shear creep and creep recovery measurement, and DSC measurement. Two organic solvents, glycerin (G) and ethylene glycol (EG), and their mixtures with water (W)(G/W and EG/W) were used as solvent for preparation of gels. Stable gels formed in pure glycerin took a fractal structure at OVA concentration C range of 15–45wt% at a temperature specific to respective C, whereas a fractal structure was not observed for gels prepared in EG, G/W, and EG/W. The results were consistent with thermal denaturation behaviors of OVA in these solvents. Morphologies of two gels prepared in water and glycerin were explored using high resolution SEM, which showed that a basic unit responsible for formation of OVA gels was spheres with a diameter ranging from 20 to 40 nm, being much larger than 5.6 nm of the diameter of native OVA, and a fractal structure was related to network formation accompanied by melting of those spheres.Dedicated to Prof. John D. Ferry on the occasion of his 85th birthday.