Bioactive peptides identified from enzymatic hydrolysates of sturgeon skin

BACKGROUND Recent studies demonstrate that fish byproducts can be used as sources of bioactive peptides for functional foods. Sturgeon skin contains abundant proteins but it has commonly been discarded during sturgeon processing. The objective of the present work was to identify and characterize the bioactive peptides from protein hydrolysates of sturgeon skin. RESULTS Sturgeon skin protein extract (SKPE) hydrolyzed by flavourzyme for 60 min exhibited high antioxidant activity, dipeptidyl peptidase IV (DPP‐IV) and angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitory activity. The sequences of peptides from flavourzyme hydrolysates were identified using high‐performance liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry. Gly‐Asp‐Arg‐Gly‐Glu‐Ser‐Gly‐Pro‐Ala (P1) showed the highest DPPH radical scavenging activity (DPPH IC50 = 1.93 mmol L−1). Gly‐Pro‐Ala‐Gly‐Glu‐Arg‐Gly‐Glu‐Gly‐Gly‐Pro‐Arg (P11) (DPP‐IV IC50 = 2.14 mmol L−1) and Ser‐Pro‐Gly‐Pro‐Asp‐Gly‐Lys‐Thr‐Gly‐Pro‐Arg (P12) (DPP‐IV IC50 = 2.61 mmol L−1) exhibited the strongest DPP‐IV inhibitory activity. Gly‐Pro‐Pro‐Gly‐Ala‐Asp‐Gly‐Gln‐Ala‐Gly‐Ala‐Lys (P6) displayed the highest ACE inhibitory activity (ACE IC50 = 3.77 mmol L−1). The molecular docking analysis revealed that DPP‐IV inhibition of P11 and P12 are mainly attributed to hydrogen bonds and hydrophobic interactions, whereas ACE inhibition of P6 is mainly attributed to strong hydrogen bonds. CONCLUSIONS These results indicate that SKPE hydrolysates generated by flavourzyme are potential sources of bioactive peptides that could be used in the health food industry. © 2021 Society of Chemical Industry.