Peptidomics Profile, Bioactive Peptides Identification and Biological Activities of Six Different Cheese Varieties

SIMPLE SUMMARY: The consumption of cheese is increasing from year to year, as this food is considered rich in nutrients, calcium and vitamins. Recently, cheese consumption has been associated with a lower incidence of cardiovascular diseases and type-2 diabetes. In this work, we characterized three traditional Egyptian cheeses (Karish, Domiati and Ras) and three additional cheese varieties consumed worldwide (Feta-type, Gouda and Edam) for their content of bioactive peptides (the main bioactive component of cheese responsible for its health benefits) and for their biological activities. Most of the identified bioactive peptides were able to inhibit key enzymes involved in the progression of cardiovascular diseases (angiotensin-converting enzyme, ACE) and diabetes (di-peptidyl-peptidase-IV, DPP-IV). Two well-known and studied bioactive peptides with anti-hypertensive activity in humans, called VPP and IPP, were quantified in the different cheeses. The results showed that the consumption of 10–20 g of Gouda cheese, 50–100 g of Domiati and 100 g of Edam should be enough to exert anti-hypertensive activity. Moreover, Gouda and Edam cheeses also contained a high amount of the DPP-IV-inhibitory peptide APFPE, suggesting a possible role in the prevention of diabetic complications. ABSTRACT: Several recent published studies reported that cheese consumption may protect against the onset of cardiovascular diseases and type-2 diabetes due to the presence of bioactive peptides. In the present work, six cheese varieties (the Egyptian traditional cheeses Karish, Domiati and Ras as well as Feta-type, Gouda and Edam cheeses) were characterized for their peptidomics profiles with high-resolution mass spectrometry, biological activities and content in bioactive peptides. The highest ACE-inhibitory and DPP-IV-inhibitory activities were found in Gouda cheese, which also displayed the highest antioxidant activity. A total of 809 peptides originating from the major milk proteins were identified, and 82 of them were bioactive. Most of them showed ACE-inhibitory, antioxidant and DPP-IV-inhibitory activities. The highest amount of the in vivo anti-hypertensive tripeptides VPP and IPP was found in Gouda cheese (39.19 ± 1.26 and 17.72 ± 0.89 mg/100 g of cheese, respectively), whereas the highest amount of APFPE was detected in Edam cheese (509.13 ± 20.44 mg/100 g of cheese). These results suggest that the intake of Edam, Domiati and, especially, Gouda cheeses may result in a possible anti-hypertensive effect in hypertensive subjects.