Characterization of the effects of high voltage pulsed electric field treatment on milk fat globule membrane proteins and phospholipid based on 31P NMR and 4D-DIA quantitative proteomics.

The milk fat globule membrane (MFGM) promotes brain development in newborns, although its extraction and recovery have been challenging. This study investigated the effects of high-voltage pulsed electric field (PEF) treatment on MFGM proteins and phospholipids. The results demonstrated that PEF treatment significantly reduced the particle size of milk fat globules, increased the absolute zeta potential value, and improved microstructure stability. Compared with pasteurization, PEF (35 kv/cm for 40 times) treatment significantly increased protein (XO/XDH, BTN, PAS6/7, and ADRP) and phospholipids (phosphatidylcholine, phosphatidylinositol phosphatidylserine, and phosphatidylethanolamine) content (0.94 ± 0.01 g/100 mL and 273.40 ± 4.60 mg/kg) and the recovery (67.35 ± 0.13 % and 96.47 ± 1.60 %) in MFGM. This improvement may result from the non-thermal PEF treatment altering MFGM permeability during sterilization, thereby reducing the adsorption of casein and whey proteins. Proteomic and 31P NMR further supported these findings. This study provides critical insights for MFGM extraction and application.