To reduce bitterness of soy protein hydrolyates, chemical modification
of lysine was investigated. Isolated soy protein (ISP) was treated wi
th N-acetylimidazole for acetylation of lysine and tyrosine. O-acetyl
tyrosine was deacetylated at pH 11. The lysine-acetylated soy protein
and control protein were hydrolyzed by bromelain to the same degree of
hydrolysis (10%), and then bitterness of each protein hydrolysate was
evaluated. Sensory analyses indicated that bitterness of hydrolysates
of lysine-acetylated ISP decreased in comparison with hydrolysates of
control ISP (p<0.005). Surface hydrophobicity of hydrolysates of lysi
ne-acetylated ISP slightly increased, and they had fewer lysine residu
es at the C-terminal region than hydrolysates of control ISP.