{
  "abstract": "Chicken feathers, an underutilized poultry-processing by-product, are a rich keratin source whose native disulfide-crosslinked structure limits solubility and functional applicability. This study investigated the effects of probe ultrasound treatment (30–60% amplitude, 10 min) on the structural and techno-functional properties of alkali-extracted chicken feather keratin (CFK) to support its valorization in various applications. Control (untreated) and ultrasound-treated CFK samples were characterized by FTIR, SDS–PAGE, free sulfhydryl (–SH) content, ζ-potential, surface hydrophobicity, antioxidant activity (ABTS and CUPRAC assays), in vitro protein digestibility, water solubility, oil-holding capacity, and emulsifying and foaming properties. FTIR and SDS–PAGE revealed that the characteristic amide bands and apparent molecular-weight profile of keratin were mainly preserved following ultrasound treatment, whereas Amide I deconvolution indicated an amplitude-dependent reduction in native β-sheet content and Ellman’s assay showed a loss of free –SH groups. Ultrasound treatment enhanced several functional properties in an amplitude-dependent manner. Surface hydrophobicity, oil-holding capacity, emulsifying activity, and ABTS-based antioxidant activity showed the highest values at 40% amplitude, while water solubility and emulsion stability were highest at 60%. The in vitro digestibility remained above 90% for all samples. These findings show that ultrasound treatment can modify the functional performance of feather keratin in an amplitude-dependent manner without marked changes in its apparent molecular-weight profile or its major amide bands, supporting its potential as a functional ingredient for various applications.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "Department of Food Engineering, Faculty of Chemical and Metallurgical Engineering, Istanbul Technical University, 34469 Maslak, Istanbul, Türkiye",
    "Senpilic Gida San. A.S., 54700 Geyve, Sakarya, Türkiye",
    "Department of Food Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Sakarya University, 54187 Serdivan, Sakarya, Türkiye"
  ],
  "article_type": null,
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 7,
  "authors": [
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Nisa Akkuzu",
      "orcid": "0009-0008-4405-1834"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Betül Unur",
      "orcid": "0009-0001-5409-3359"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Rukiye Gundogan",
      "orcid": "0000-0001-7509-0467"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1
      ],
      "name": "Tuncay Özdemir"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2
      ],
      "name": "Gulsah Karabulut",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-4540-3044"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Ebru Firatligil",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-9637-3770"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Asli Can Karaca",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-4137-0644"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/9kecgsava1yks.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.3390/molecules31214037",
  "fulltext_url": null,
  "id": "9kecgsava1yks",
  "issns": [
    "1420-3049"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://www.mdpi.com/1420-3049/31/21/4037",
  "language": null,
  "licence": "CC-BY-4.0",
  "licence_label": "CC BY 4.0",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [],
  "openalex": null,
  "pdf_url": null,
  "pmcid": null,
  "pmid": null,
  "published": "2026-11-09",
  "publisher": "MDPI AG",
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/9kecgsava1yks.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-11-10T00:21:21Z",
      "native_id": "10.3390/molecules31214037",
      "source": "crossref",
      "url": "https://www.mdpi.com/1420-3049/31/21/4037"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "chemistry",
      "origin": "issn:1420-3049",
      "subfield": "general"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Effect of Ultrasound Treatment on the Structural and Techno-Functional Properties of Feather-Derived Keratin",
  "title_text": "Effect of Ultrasound Treatment on the Structural and Techno-Functional Properties of Feather-Derived Keratin",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-11-10T00:21:21Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/9kecgsava1yks",
  "venue": "Molecules",
  "versions": []
}