Scientists at UC Irvine have found a way to unboil eggs. The discovery could save the food and pharmaceutical industries billions of dollars. The researchers have filed to patent their discovery.
During the boiling of an egg, the heat denatures the proteins in egg white, causing them to tangle and clump together. That process solidifies the egg white. However, according to research work published in the journal ChemBioChem, scientists at UC Irvine can reverse that process in a matter of minutes.
Using urea to restore denatured protein in eggs
The scientists described the process of unboiling an egg as involving addition of a chemical called urea to the cooked egg. They have a device that helps with the whole process of restoring the denatured proteins in egg white.
Egg boiled for 20 minutes
The good thing about the new approach of unboiling eggs is that it takes a shorter time to complete than existing technique. In their experiment, Gregory Weisssaid, a UCI biochemist, said they used eggs that had been cooked for 20 minutes at a temperate of 90oC. At the temperate the proteins inside the egg are completely denatured because the standard time for boiling an egg is 10 minutes.
According to Weisssaid, the main issue is not unboiling an egg as just was that a proof-of-concept. The ability to reverse denatured proteins could help reduce material losses in a lab or industrial setting. Additionally, the fact that Weisssaid and his team found a way to reverse cooked protein at a shorter time could also save time in the process of protein restoration.
Possible industrial application
There are certainly various industrial applications of the egg unboiling technique.
The researchers have applied to patent their method of undoing boiled egg. The $160 billion biotechnology industry and other sectors such as the food industry could benefit from the egg unboiling method, according to the researchers.