INFORM June 2026

28 INFORM JUNE 2026 , VOL. 37, NO. 6

100

80

60

40

Enzymatic Activity Inhibition (%)

20

0

Tyr Ala

Gly Leu

Ser Cys Phe Trp Asn Arg Thr Lys His Asp Gln Ile Val Glu Pro Met Hyaluronidase Collagenase Elastase

Comparative inhibition of key skin-aging enzymes (collagenase, elastase, and hyaluronidase) by individual amino acids. Source: Li lab.

TBARS indicating primary and secondary oxidation products suppression. Our findings establish the role of amino acids in antioxidant and enzyme inhibition and provide a framework for future computational, Quantitative Structure-Activity Relationship (QSAR), and machine learning (ML)-driven bioactive peptide discovery from food protein hydrolysates. LOOKING AHEAD The National Institutes of Health allocated approximately USD 2.43 billion in 2023 toward digestive disease research. This kind of funding directly

accelerates the development and application of protein hydrolysates and peptides in medical foods and therapeutic formulations. Hydrolyzed proteins have better absorption and less allergenicity. Regulatory support is also expanding. The US Food and Drug Administration continues to increase GRAS approvals for enzyme-processed proteins used in nutrition, nutraceuticals, and infant care products, while the European Food Safety Authority reports a growing number of submissions related to protein processing and safety evaluation. This regulatory clarity is making it easier to

scale hydrolysate-based ingredients across food and health sectors. Amino acids remain underexploited in terms of their antioxidant capacity, despite being present in both foods and biological systems. Their functionality is influenced by pH, concentration, and surrounding compounds. Therefore, artificial model systems are only the beginning of understanding how amino acids truly behave in natural systems. There is a strong case for investigating the interactions between amino acids and system-level consequences. Residue–