Bioactive Peptides and Hydrolysates from Plant Sources: Nutraceutical Compounds, Applications, and Challenges A Review

Plant proteins are a good alternative to animal sources in the production of bioactive peptides as rich, safe, and suitable sources for industrial scale production. Peptides obtained from the hydrolysis of plant proteins are also compounds with therapeutic properties, safe, low molecular weight, low cost, high bioactivity and easy absorption. The biological activities of peptides derived from plant proteins, depending on the type and sequence of their amino acids, include influencing the main body systems such as the heart and blood vessels, digestive system, nerves and immune system. Due to the promotion of health and the need to prevent diseases, the production and use of bioactive peptides have become increasingly popular due to their antioxidant, anti-blood pressure and antimicrobial properties. In addition to biological activities, plant-derived bioactive peptides have a wide range of functional properties, including various physical and chemical properties such as high solubility, emulsifying, foaming, and hydrophilic/lipophilic properties. This review presents research progress on the biological activities and functional properties of plant-derived peptides and the use of bioactive peptides in various food formulations as nutraceutical, functional or therapeutic food ingredients as well as food preservatives. The bitter taste and toxicity of these bioactive peptides are in some cases potential challenges that need to be overcome before wider use. The purpose of this review is to improve the understanding of bioactive peptides derived from plants and to present their applications. In addition, in this review study, the major challenges and future prospects in the application of plant-derived bioactive peptides in the development of multipurpose products have been discussed.