Optical biosensor analysis of the heat denaturation of bovine lactoferrin

There is growing interest in bovine lactoferrin as a nutritional ingredient, and since thermal exposure may compromise protein functionality, the heat-induced denaturation of native bovine lactoferrin was monitored by a recently developed optical biosensor-based immunoassay. Kinetic parameters were determined between 70 and 90 °C, which confirmed that thermal exposures typical of pasteurisation were relatively benign with respect to retained conformational integrity, while higher temperature–time combinations resulted in significant loss of conformationally intact lactoferrin. The influence of solution pH was also investigated and the biosensor technique compared with an HPLC procedure. The described biosensor immunoassay provides a useful complement to current analytical methods for investigation of heat-induced protein denaturation.