Partially puriWed lysozyme from hen egg white
showed good storage stability in lyophilized form and in
zein Wlms containing disodium EDTA. This result shows
that the ready to use pre-cast antimicrobial zein Wlms
may be supplied commercially for packaging applications.
The partially puriWed enzyme incorporated into
zein Wlms showed antimicrobial activity on diVerent bacteria
including B. subtilis and L. plantarum. Also, Wlms
obtained by combination of lysozyme with disodium
EDTA showed antimicrobial eVect on E. coli. The activation
of partially puriWed lysozyme in zein Wlms brings
the advantage of obtaining an antimicrobial eVect in
zein Wlms with low initial lysozyme activities. The low
solubility of partially puriWed enzyme preparation in
zein Wlms, on the other hand, causes the formation of
protein aggregates in zein Wlms. Thus, some additional
edible ingredients such as proteins with emulsifying
activity may also be employed to minimize structural
changes and to obtain more uniform antimicrobial zein
Wlms. Further tests are now continuing in our laboratory
to improve the structural aspects of partially puriWed
lysozyme incorporated zein Wlms and to test the
obtained Wlms on diVerent foods.