Bromelain Introduction

Bromelain is a type of pure natural plant protease obtained through extracting from pineapple’s stem, leaf, and peel, refining, purifying, concentrating, enzyme immobilization, and freeze drying. It is a light grey powder whose molecular weight is 33000 and isoelectric point is 9.55. The best quality bromelain is acquired by processing the mid-section stem of the pineapple, ultrafiltrating to filter and concentrate, and freezing and drying at low temperature. The product has been broadly applied in several industries including food and pharmaceutical.

1. Bromelain Application in Food Industry

a.       Baking: Adding some bromelain into dough can degrade gluten, making softened dough easier to process and enhancing cracker and bread’s taste and quality.

b.      Cheese: Used for casein condensation

c.       Meat Tenderization: Bromelain hydrolyzes meat protein from giant molecules into absorbable micro molecules and protein. It is widely applied into processing of meat products.

d.      Other food processing areas: Some use bromelain to increase bean cake and soybean flour’s PDI and NSI values to produce soluble protein products, as well as soybean flour contained breakfast, cereal, and beverages. It can also be used in dehydrated beans, baby food, and artificial butter production; clarifying apple juice; soft sweets production; digestible food for patients; more flavor for daily food.

2. Bromelain Application in Pharmaceutical and Health Care Products

a.       Constraint the Growth of Tumor Cells

According to the clinical research, bromelain can effectively restrict the growth of tumor cells.

b.      Prevention and Treatment of Cardiovascular Diseases

Bromelain is beneficial to the prevention and treatment of cardiovascular diseases. It can help to avoid heart attack and stroke caused by PLT accumulation, relieve angina symptom and artery contraction, and accelerate decomposition of FBG.

c.       Decrustation of Burns

Bromelain can selectively remove skin, paving way for new skin transplantation. Experiments on animals proved that it poses no harm to surrounding normal skin. Use of antibiotics in selected area will not affect its outcome.

d.      Anti-inflammatory

Bromelain can effectively cure inflammation and hydropsy (including phlebitis, injury of skeletal muscles, hematoma, stomatitis, ulcer of diabetes patient, and sports injury); it obsesses potential to activate body’s potential of anti-inflammatory ability. Bromelain can also be used to alleviate diarrhea.

e.       Enhancing Medicine Absorption

Taking bromelain with antibiotics (for instance, tetracycline and amoxicillin) can boost their effects. Based on related researches, it can stimulate the antibiotics transmission at the infected area, and therefore the amount of antibiotics taken can be reduced. It is speculated that similar effect applies with anti-cancer drugs. In addition, bromelain can expedite absorption for nutritious elements.

3.      Bromelain Application in Beauty Care and Cosmetic Industries 
Bromelain has outstanding effect on skin smoothening and whitening, as well as freckle eliminating. 
Fundamental Principle: Bromelain can work on aged stratum corneum of human skin, causing it to retreat, degrade, and peel off; it can stimulate skin’s metabolism and reduce skin darkening caused by the sun, keeping it smooth, tender, and bright.

4.      Bromelain Application in Feeds Industry

Mix bromelain with feeds formula or directly with feeds can dramatically improve the utilization rate and conversion rate of protein, explore broader protein source, and therefore reduce the feeds cost.