AI identifies plant proteins for use as enzymes

AI may have shaped the next generation of plant-based meat products.

Researchers from the UK’s University of Leeds have developed an AI process that can rapidly identify plant proteins capable of acting as emulsifiers, from a choice of tens of millions of initial candidates. The process has already identified nearly 800 proteins.

These proteins could potentially be used widely in both food and cosmetics. They could be particularly useful in plant-based meat substitutes.

Emulsifiers are an important part of food production because they enable the blending of oil and water into stable mixtures. They also reduce stickiness and prevent separation of components in processed foods.

Before the development of this AI tool, explains Dr Simha Sridharan, one of the researchers, predicting which plant proteins could be used as emulsifiers was a costly trial-and-error process. There had been no reliable way to quickly predict which plant proteins would do the job.