Preparation and characterization of a novel walnut peptide–calcium chelate and its role in promoting calcium absorption in calcium-deficient mice

Walnut peptide (WP) was chelated with calcium (Ca) to prepare WP-Ca chelate. The characterization, stability, and absorption properties of WP-Ca were investigated. Results showed that WP showed a calcium-binding capacity of 14.22 μg/mg, primarily through interactions with nitrogen and oxygen atoms....

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Yaoxin Zhang, Xuehang Wang, Yuan Qi, Pengyuan Pan, Xiaoyi Li, Yue Leng, Ji Wang
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2025-08-01
Series:Journal of Agriculture and Food Research
Subjects:
Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666154325004508
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1849713097769484288
author Yaoxin Zhang
Xuehang Wang
Yuan Qi
Pengyuan Pan
Xiaoyi Li
Yue Leng
Ji Wang
author_facet Yaoxin Zhang
Xuehang Wang
Yuan Qi
Pengyuan Pan
Xiaoyi Li
Yue Leng
Ji Wang
author_sort Yaoxin Zhang
collection DOAJ
description Walnut peptide (WP) was chelated with calcium (Ca) to prepare WP-Ca chelate. The characterization, stability, and absorption properties of WP-Ca were investigated. Results showed that WP showed a calcium-binding capacity of 14.22 μg/mg, primarily through interactions with nitrogen and oxygen atoms. WP-Ca had good thermal stability and gastrointestinal digestive stability. In the flipped rat intestinal capsule model, the calcium absorption capacity of WP-Ca increased by approximately 3.75 times, and at the same time enhanced the calcium transport of the Caco-2 cell monolayer. Additionally, the results of animal experiments on calcium deficiency induced by a low-calcium diet indicated that WP-Ca (66.67 mg Ca/kg bw) supplementation effectively corrected calcium imbalance, significantly (P < 0.05) increased trabecular number and cortical thickness, and improved skeletal mechanical strength. Pearson's correlation analysis showed that the microbial genera of Bacteroidete, Akkermansia, Allobaculum, and Oscillospira were significantly (P < 0.05) associated with increased bone mass. Overall, these findings suggest that WP-Ca shows great potential in the development of new and highly efficient calcium supplements for osteoporosis prevention, nutritional fortification for special populations, and innovation in functional foods.
format Article
id doaj-art-c57319daf2a94307aa9411c1a9fd97c8
institution DOAJ
issn 2666-1543
language English
publishDate 2025-08-01
publisher Elsevier
record_format Article
series Journal of Agriculture and Food Research
spelling doaj-art-c57319daf2a94307aa9411c1a9fd97c82025-08-20T03:14:02ZengElsevierJournal of Agriculture and Food Research2666-15432025-08-012210207910.1016/j.jafr.2025.102079Preparation and characterization of a novel walnut peptide–calcium chelate and its role in promoting calcium absorption in calcium-deficient miceYaoxin Zhang0Xuehang Wang1Yuan Qi2Pengyuan Pan3Xiaoyi Li4Yue Leng5Ji Wang6College of Food Science and Engineering, Jilin Agricultural University, Changchun, 130118, PR ChinaCollege of Life Sciences, Changchun Sci-Tech University, Changchun, 130600, PR ChinaCollege of School of Food Science and Technology, Jiangnan University, Wuxi, 214122, PR ChinaCollege of Food Science and Engineering, Jilin Agricultural University, Changchun, 130118, PR ChinaCollege of Food Science and Engineering, Jilin Agricultural University, Changchun, 130118, PR ChinaCollege of Food Science and Engineering, Jilin Agricultural University, Changchun, 130118, PR ChinaCollege of Food Science and Engineering, Jilin Agricultural University, Changchun, 130118, PR China; Corresponding author. No. 2888 Xincheng Street, College of Food Science and Engineering, Jilin Agricultural University, Changchun, 130118, PR China.Walnut peptide (WP) was chelated with calcium (Ca) to prepare WP-Ca chelate. The characterization, stability, and absorption properties of WP-Ca were investigated. Results showed that WP showed a calcium-binding capacity of 14.22 μg/mg, primarily through interactions with nitrogen and oxygen atoms. WP-Ca had good thermal stability and gastrointestinal digestive stability. In the flipped rat intestinal capsule model, the calcium absorption capacity of WP-Ca increased by approximately 3.75 times, and at the same time enhanced the calcium transport of the Caco-2 cell monolayer. Additionally, the results of animal experiments on calcium deficiency induced by a low-calcium diet indicated that WP-Ca (66.67 mg Ca/kg bw) supplementation effectively corrected calcium imbalance, significantly (P < 0.05) increased trabecular number and cortical thickness, and improved skeletal mechanical strength. Pearson's correlation analysis showed that the microbial genera of Bacteroidete, Akkermansia, Allobaculum, and Oscillospira were significantly (P < 0.05) associated with increased bone mass. Overall, these findings suggest that WP-Ca shows great potential in the development of new and highly efficient calcium supplements for osteoporosis prevention, nutritional fortification for special populations, and innovation in functional foods.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666154325004508Walnut peptide-calcium chelateCharacterizationStabilityCalcium absorptionGut microbiota
spellingShingle Yaoxin Zhang
Xuehang Wang
Yuan Qi
Pengyuan Pan
Xiaoyi Li
Yue Leng
Ji Wang
Preparation and characterization of a novel walnut peptide–calcium chelate and its role in promoting calcium absorption in calcium-deficient mice
Journal of Agriculture and Food Research
Walnut peptide-calcium chelate
Characterization
Stability
Calcium absorption
Gut microbiota
title Preparation and characterization of a novel walnut peptide–calcium chelate and its role in promoting calcium absorption in calcium-deficient mice
title_full Preparation and characterization of a novel walnut peptide–calcium chelate and its role in promoting calcium absorption in calcium-deficient mice
title_fullStr Preparation and characterization of a novel walnut peptide–calcium chelate and its role in promoting calcium absorption in calcium-deficient mice
title_full_unstemmed Preparation and characterization of a novel walnut peptide–calcium chelate and its role in promoting calcium absorption in calcium-deficient mice
title_short Preparation and characterization of a novel walnut peptide–calcium chelate and its role in promoting calcium absorption in calcium-deficient mice
title_sort preparation and characterization of a novel walnut peptide calcium chelate and its role in promoting calcium absorption in calcium deficient mice
topic Walnut peptide-calcium chelate
Characterization
Stability
Calcium absorption
Gut microbiota
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666154325004508
work_keys_str_mv AT yaoxinzhang preparationandcharacterizationofanovelwalnutpeptidecalciumchelateanditsroleinpromotingcalciumabsorptionincalciumdeficientmice
AT xuehangwang preparationandcharacterizationofanovelwalnutpeptidecalciumchelateanditsroleinpromotingcalciumabsorptionincalciumdeficientmice
AT yuanqi preparationandcharacterizationofanovelwalnutpeptidecalciumchelateanditsroleinpromotingcalciumabsorptionincalciumdeficientmice
AT pengyuanpan preparationandcharacterizationofanovelwalnutpeptidecalciumchelateanditsroleinpromotingcalciumabsorptionincalciumdeficientmice
AT xiaoyili preparationandcharacterizationofanovelwalnutpeptidecalciumchelateanditsroleinpromotingcalciumabsorptionincalciumdeficientmice
AT yueleng preparationandcharacterizationofanovelwalnutpeptidecalciumchelateanditsroleinpromotingcalciumabsorptionincalciumdeficientmice
AT jiwang preparationandcharacterizationofanovelwalnutpeptidecalciumchelateanditsroleinpromotingcalciumabsorptionincalciumdeficientmice