By Ben
Coxworth
January 07, 2022
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Like traditional egg white powder, the fungus-derived ovalbumin
(pictured) has excellent foaming properties Photo credit: VTT
Technical Research Centre of Finland
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In a study conducted by the University of Helsinki and the
VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland, scientists genetically altered
filamentous Trichoderma reesei fungus so that it would produce and
secrete ovalbumin, which constitutes over half of the protein content in egg
white powder.
They did so by isolating the chicken gene responsible for
producing ovalbumin, inserting it into the fungus, harvesting the secreted
protein, then concentrating and drying it into a powder. When tested, that
powder exhibited many of the same desirable qualities as egg white powder, such
as the ability to foam up.
Additionally, the scientists state that as compared to
raising hens for their egg whites, production of the fungus-derived ovalbumin
should reduce land use requirements by nearly 90 percent, and reduce greenhouse
gas emissions by 31 to 55 percent.
They have yet to determine precisely how much energy would
be required, but believe that it should be substantially less than is currently
required by chicken farms. If low-carbon energy sources were to be used, the
researchers estimate that the reduction in greenhouse gases could be as high as
72 percent.
A paper on the study was recently published in the
journal Nature Food.
Source: University of Helsinki