Abstract:This study investigated the effects of ultrasound-assisted enzymatic hydrolysis on mung bean proteins to enhance peptide yield, antioxidant capacity, and promote the application of plant proteins in food. To investigate the effects of sonication alone and ultrasound-enzymatic treatment on the structural properties of mung bean protein (MBP), as well as their influence on the structure and antioxidant activity of mung bean peptides. Results showed that using an ultrasound power of 400 W, ultrasound time of 15 min, alkaline protease, and enzymatic hydrolysis for 4 h significantly improved the yield, nitrogen solubility index, hydrolysis degree, and antioxidant activity of mung bean peptides. Compared to enzymatic products without ultrasound treatment, these parameters were increased by 17.8%, 11.1%, 5.8%, and 14.7%, respectively. This indicates that ultrasonic pretreatment effectively enhanced enzymatic efficiency and the activity of mung bean protein. Structural analysis revealed that the high shear, mechanical energy, and cavitation effects generated by ultrasound pretreatment altered the molecular conformation of mung bean protein. Specifically, the ultrasound-assisted enzymatic treatment group exhibited a decrease in α-helix and β-sheet content, an increase in β-turn and irregular curling in the secondary structure, an 89% reduction in average particle size, a 4.4-fold increase in ζ-potential value, and a significant decrease in protein particle. The molecular mass of the ultrasound-assisted enzymatic products was significantly lower than that of the single enzymatic products. These findings suggest that this method is an effective approach to enhance the utilization of mung bean protein. Furthermore, the results of this study provide a theoretical foundation for the application of mung bean protein in food processing.