Formation of Whey Protein Isolate (WPI)–Maltodextrin Conjugates in Fibers Produced by Needleless Electrospinning

Glycation of proteins via the first stage of the Maillard reaction is capable of improving their stability but not economically feasible yet. This work reports the glycation of whey protein isolate (WPI) with maltodextrin at a high yield after heating electrospun fibers made from the reactants. Glycoconjugates were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and SDS-PAGE. The binding ratio between WPI and maltodextrin was assessed via the free amino groups. The molecular weight of the conjugates and the reaction yield were studied by size exclusion chromatography. The impact of different mass ratios between WPI and maltodextrin in the fibers (5:95, 10:90, 20:80, and 25:75 w/w) was investigated. With increasing WPI content, the binding ratio of maltodextrin decreased from ∼2.1 to ∼1.2. Preferably small polysaccharides (2–13 kDa) from the maltodextrin reacted. Protein specific reaction yields of up to 44.52 ± 7.46% w/w were demonstrated in all WPI–maltodextrin fibers after heating.