Glucose and β-Cyclodextrin Glycosylation Improving the Gelling Properties of Fish Gelatin Emulsion Gels

In this study, fish gelatin was used as the raw material to investigate the effects of glycation with glucose and β-cyclodextrin on the gelling properties of fish gelatin emulsion gels. The emulsion gels were prepared using a one-step cooling method. The impact of different sugars and glycation reaction times on the properties of the gels was systematically examined. The results showed that the degree of glycation reached its maximum at 4 hours, with 8.32%±0.49% for glucose-gelatin and 13.34%±0.29% for β-cyclodextrin-gelatin. Additionally, after glycation, the gel strength, hardness, deformability resistance, and adhesiveness of the glucose-gelatin and β-cyclodextrin-gelatin emulsion gels significantly improved (P<0.05) after heating for 2 and 4 hours, respectively. These modifications also enhanced the gelling and storage stability of the emulsion gels. FT-IR spectra and intrinsic fluorescence analyses confirmed the formation of covalent complexes between fish gelatin and the sugars. Furthermore, scanning electron microscopy revealed that the β-cyclodextrin-gelatin emulsion gels exhibited a denser spatial network structure compared to the glucose-gelatin emulsion gels. In conclusion, glycation with glucose and β-cyclodextrin effectively improved the gelling properties of fish gelatin emulsion gels, providing experimental support for the development of high-quality emulsion gels and offering valuable insights into the modification of natural proteins.