Modification of Protein Micelles by Limited Hydrolysis of Peptide Bonds: A Model of the Sequential Degradation of β-Casein Micelles

A model for the degradation of β-casein micelles with the limited hydrolysis of trypsin-specific peptide bonds was proposed. A sequential mechanism of the degradation of micelles and assembly of peptide nanoparticles from the fragments of a β-casein polypeptide chain was considered. The degradation kinetics was studied by numerical modeling, taking into account the formation of intermediate components of different sizes and peptide nanoparticles, which are more difficult to hydrolyze with trypsin. The simulation results are consistent with the experimental data previously obtained by atomic force microscopy, FTIR spectroscopy, and light scattering.