Sesame proteins

Sesame (Sesamum indicm L.) is one of the world’s most important oil seed crops. Apart from being an important oilseed source, sesame seed is a potential source of proteins. This article is a review of sesame protein, including seed structure, chemical composition, extraction, characteristics, functional properties and modification of sesame protein. Sesame seed structure, chemical composition, sesame seed cross-section and proximate composition have also been reviewed. For sesame protein extraction, there are many reports on various methods including alkaline or salt extraction and isoelectric precipitation (pI) or aqueous extraction. For characteristics of sesame proteins, many studies have characterized the main proteins in sesame which are albumin and globulin. Some functional properties of sesame protein and the influence of various processing factors and conditions are also reviewed in the article. Lastly, the article reviews the proteolytic enzyme modification of proteins and shows that it is an effective way to improve the various functional properties of proteins and to increase the field of application of proteins.