Protein Hydrolysates from Shrimp (Metapenaeus dobsoni) Head Waste: Optimization of Extraction Conditions by Response Surface Methodology

Utilization of shrimp head waste from the processing industry offers a solution to environmental pollution and also produces valuable bioactive peptides. The present study was aimed to optimize the alcalase assisted extraction conditions by response surface methodology (RSM) to obtain protein hydrolysates from shrimp (Metapenaeus dobsoni) head waste with maximum antioxidant activity. Based on the models derived by RSM, the optimized conditions for maximum degree of hydrolysis (DH) were pH 8.2, temperature of 45.4°C, and enzyme/substrate (E/S) of 1.8%. Meanwhile, the optimized conditions for maximum antioxidant activity of protein hydrolysates as measured by 2, 2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrozyl (DPPH) and ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) assays were pH 8.2 and 8.1, temperatures of 49.7 and 59.4°C, and E/S of 2.1 and 2.7%, respectively. The maximum predicted values for DH, DPPH, and FRAP were 42.44%, 39.64% inhibition, and 8.3 μM Fe (II)/g wet wt. of sample, respectively. The extraction of protein hydrolysates at optimal conditions derived by these models resulted in DH, DPPH, and FRAPs of 40.31%, 38.93%, and 8.21 μM Fe (II)/g of sample, respectively, demonstrating the fitness of the models. The present study demonstrates the potential of Metapenaeus dobsoni head waste as a source of protein hydrolysates with prospective antioxidant activity.