Naturally Occurring Nanostructures in Food
Résumé
This chapter focuses on protein-based and lipid-based native nanostructures. The naturally occurring nanostructures coming from milk and eggs constitute a large part of the building blocks already used to design new nanostructures. The chapter also focuses on the description of the structure of several food proteins as they exist naturally in food. Food proteins exist mainly in the monomeric form, but are able to self-assemble into oligomers or aggregates in some specific conditions. These conditions are also addressed. The lipid droplets are spherical particles constituted by a hydrophobic core rich in triacylglycerols (TAG) covered by surfaceactive molecules such as phospholipids and proteins. These TAG-rich droplets are involved in the storage and delivery of energy. Milk fat globules have a core of TAG covered by a biological membrane composed by a trilayer of phospholipids and proteins.
