The trypsin inhibitor (TI) is one of the most important anti-nutritive elements in soybeans. As a new nonthermal technology, dielectric-barrier discharge (DBD) cold plasma has attracted increasing attention in food processing. In this research, we investigated the effect of dielectric-barrier discharge (DBD) plasma treatment on soybean trypsin inhibitor content and its structure, evaluated TI toxicity and the safety of its degradation products after treatment with DBD technology in vitro and in vivo, and applied the technology to soybean milk, which was analyzed for quality. Using the statistical analysis of Student’s t-test, the results demonstrated that DBD plasma treatment significantly decreased the content of TI (33.8 kV at 1, 3, or 5 min, p < 0.05, p < 0.01, p < 0.001) and destroyed the secondary and tertiary structures of TI. TI was toxic to Caco-2 cells and could inhibit body weight gain, damage liver and kidney functions, and cause moderate or severe lesions in mouse organ tissues, whereas these phenomena were alleviated in mice treated with degradation products of TI after DBD plasma treatment under the optimal condition (33.8 kV at 5 min). The content of TI in DBD-treated soymilk was also significantly reduced (p < 0.001), while the acidity, alkalinity, conductivity, color, and amino acid composition of soymilk were not affected, and there were no statistical differences (p > 0.05). In summary, DBD plasma is a promising non-thermal processing technology used to eliminate TI from soybean products.
Keywords: caco-2 cell viability; dielectric-barrier discharge plasma; inactivation; physicochemical properties; rheological properties; safety evaluation; soybean trypsin inhibitor; soymilk quality.