Isolation and recovery of glycomacropeptide from milk whey by means of thermal treatment Isolamento e recuperação do glycomacropeptido do soro de leite mediante tratamento térmico

GMP is a C-terminal hydrophilic casein-peptide formed by 64 amino acid residues which presents up to four carbohydrate chains (sialic acid-galactose-N-acetyl galactosamine) bonded to threonine residues in six different positions (121; 131; 133; 136; 142, and 165). Ramified chain amino acids prevail in its structure; nevertheless there is absence of aromatic amino acids (phenylalanine, tryptophan, and tyrosine). Depending on the κ-casein variant that forms GMP, it may contain phosphorus up to 0.4% and present an approximate molecular mass between 6,8 and 8,0 kDa in its monomeric state. Recent research established GMP concentrations of 1.2-1.5 g/L in whey from cheese manufacturing, which accounts for between 10-25% of whey protein (CHOW; HARPER, 2001).