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Review
. 2025 Feb 11:16:1429225.
doi: 10.3389/fpls.2025.1429225. eCollection 2025.

Pulse protein quality and derived bioactive peptides

Matthew G Nosworthy  1   2 , Bianyun Yu  3 , L Irina Zaharia  3 , Gerardo Medina  4 , Nii Patterson  3
Affiliations
Review

Pulse protein quality and derived bioactive peptides

Matthew G Nosworthy et al. Front Plant Sci. .

Abstract

There is a growing consumer interest in sources of dietary protein that are plant-based. Pulse crops, such as lentils, beans, chickpeas, and peas, are gaining popularity due to their environmental sustainability, nutrient density, and functional attributes. The protein content and quality of pulses vary across different pulse classes and processing methods. The biological properties of the protein and the physiologically active peptides make pulse crops attractive as potentially functional or health-promoting foods. This review highlights the nutritional quality of pulse proteins as determined by the Protein Efficiency Ratio and Protein Digestibility Corrected Amino Acid Score as well as bioactive properties of specific bioactive peptides related to amelioration of hypertension and diabetes. Additionally, the use of proteomics platforms, such as mass spectrometry, in combination with bioinformatics tools, enables the identification and characterization of bioactive peptides in pulse crops. These technologies facilitate the development of pulse-derived products with enhanced nutritional values. Overall, the high nutritional quality of pulse-based proteins supports the benefits of pulse inclusion in the diet, which can also exert beneficial bioactivities resulting in improving outcomes in non-communicable diseases.

Keywords: bioactive peptide; protein digestibility corrected amino acid score; protein efficiency ratio; protein quality; proteomics; pulse.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest. The handling editor RD declared a past co-authorship with the authors BY, LZ, and NP.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
(A) Total essential and (B) non-essential amino acids in thermally processed pulses. EAA: Essential amino acids; NEAA: Non-essential amino acids. Data on processed peas were adapted from Nosworthy et al. (2017), lentils from Nosworthy et al. (2018b), chickpea from Nosworthy et al. (2020), and beans from Nosworthy et al. (2018a). (C) Protein content, (D) Protein Efficiency Ratio (PER), and (E) Protein Digestibility Corrected Amino Acid Score (PDCAAS) of thermally treated pulses. (F) Impact of pulse consumption angiotensin converting enzyme and Dipeptidyl-peptidase IV activity and downstream implications in human health. (G) Workflow for the identification and evaluation bioactive peptides derived from pulse protein.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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