Stabilization of acidic soy protein-based dispersions and emulsions by soy soluble polysaccharides

Soy soluble polysaccharides (SSPS) are shown to prevent destabilization of soy protein isolate (SPI) dispersions and SPI-based oil-in-water (O/W) emulsions under acidic conditions. Addition of SSPS above a critical concentration (0.25 wt%) increased the stability of 0.50 wt% SPI dispersions against aggregation and phase separation under conditions where SPI would normally precipitate (near its isoelectric point). Though SSPS neutralized SPI surface charge via electrostatic interaction, there was increased stability against aggregation due to steric repulsion. At acidic pH, addition of 1 wt% NaCl electrostatically screened protein–polysaccharide complexation which led to SPI precipitation and sedimentation. However, the order of salt addition had a significant impact on charge screening, with salt added before pH adjustment reducing SPI–SSPS complexation whereas it had less effect when added afterwards. Salt penetration efficacy diminished with decreasing pH. O/W emulsions (5 wt% oil) prepared with 0.50 wt% SPI destabilized at pH 4–5 due to protein aggregation, but addition of ≥0.25 wt% SSPS improved emulsion stability by inhibiting protein–protein interactions thus limiting increases in oil droplet diameter over time. Overall, both dispersion and emulsion stability greatly depended on pH, ionic strength and SSPS concentration. These results demonstrated that SSPS could effectively stabilize acidic SPI dispersions and that SPI–SSPS interactions may be used as a tool to improve the kinetic stability of SPI-based O/W emulsions.