Experiment 8:

Properties of
Proteins
Group 6:
Lantano, Lusung, Manao, Magcalas
Milk
A mixture of many types of proteins,
most of them present in very small
amounts.

Milk proteins are classified into three

main groups of proteins on the basis of
their widely different behaviors and
forms of existence.
 pH of the Milk
The pH of a glass of cow milk ranges from 6.4 to
6.8.
Milk is slightly acidic.
Milk from other bovines and non-bovine
mammals varies in composition, but has a similar
pH.
The pH of milk changes over time. As milk goes
sour, it becomes more acidic and the pH gets
lower.
Casein
A heterogeneous mixture of phosphorous
containing proteins in milk.
It is present in milk as calcium salt and
calcium caseinate.
It is a mixture of alpha, beta and kappa
caseins to form a cluster called MICELLE.
These micelles are responsible for the white
opaque appearance of milk.
 A globular colloidal protein.
Globular proteins are hydrophobic
proteins which in certain external
condition are soluble in eater.
A globular protein such as a casein
becomes increasingly insoluble as it
approaches its isoelectric point.
 Casein, like proteins, are made up of
many hundreds of individual amino acids.
Each may have a positive or a negative
charge, depending on the pH of the [milk]
system.
At some pH value, all the positive charges
and all the negative charges on the [casein]
protein will be in balance, so that the net
charge on the protein will be zero.
 Isoelectric Point
It is thepHat which a particularmoleculeor
surface carries no netelectrical charge or the
negative and positive charges are equal.
Amphotericmolecules calledzwitterionscontain
both positive and negative charges depending on
thefunctional groupspresent in the molecule. The
net charge on the molecule is affected by pH of their
surrounding environment and can become more
positively or negatively charged due to the loss or
gain ofprotons(H+).
The pI value can affect the solubility of a molecule
at a given pH.
 Such molecules have minimumsolubilityin
water or salt solutions at the pH which
corresponds to theirpIand
oftenprecipitateout ofsolution.
Amino acids which make up proteins may be
positive, negative, neutral or polar in nature,
and together give a protein its overall charge.
At apHbelow their pI, proteins carry a net
positive charge; above their pI they carry a
net negative charge.
Results:
Amt. of Acetic
pH Reading Appearance
Acid added
10 drops 4.9 white solution
10 drops 4.8 white solution
yellowish
10 drops 4.3
solution
thick yellowish
10 drops 5.3
mixture
thick and sticky
10 drops 5.4
yellow mixture
Approximate pI of Casein = 5.4
 When the pH of milk is changed, the acidic or basic groups of
the proteins will be neutralized. At the pH at which the positive
charge on a protein equals exactly the negative charge, the net
total charge of the protein is zero.
-> This pH is called the isoelectric point of the protein.
pI for casein = 4.6
If an acid is added to milk, the pH falls. As the pH falls the
charge on casein falls and it precipitates. Hence milk curdles as
it sours, or the casein precipitates more completely at low pH.

03/24/17