An egg yolk surrounded by the egg white.

Egg white is the common name for the clear liquid (also called the albumen or the glair/glaire) contained within an egg. It is the cytoplasm of the egg, which until fertilization is a single cell (including the yolk). It consists mainly of about 15% proteins dissolved in water. Its primary natural purpose is to protect the egg yolk and provide additional nutrition for the growth of the embryo, as it is rich in proteins and is of high nutritional value. Unlike the egg yolk, it contains a negligible amount of fat. Egg whites have also come to have many culinary and non-culinary uses for humans. Download high resolution version (1024x714, 48 KB)raw egg Photographer: jefras Source: Stock. ... Download high resolution version (1024x714, 48 KB)raw egg Photographer: jefras Source: Stock. ... In most birds and reptiles, an egg (Latin ovum) is the zygote, resulting from fertilization of the ovum. ... Schematic showing the cytoplasm, with major components of a typical animal cell. ... Categories: Biology stubs ... Drawing of the structure of cork as it appeared under the microscope to Robert Hooke from Micrographia which is the origin of the word cell being used to describe the smallest unit of a living organism Cells in culture, stained for keratin (red) and DNA (green) The cell is the... A representation of the 3D structure of myoglobin showing coloured alpha helices. ... An egg yolk surrounded by the egg white An egg yolk is the part of an egg which serves as the food source for the developing embryo inside. ... For other uses, see Embryo (disambiguation). ...

Composition

The egg white is approximately two-thirds of the total egg's weight out of its shell with 90% of that weight coming from water. The remaining weight of the egg white comes from protein, trace minerals, fatty material, vitamins, and glucose.^[1] The U.S. large egg's white weighs 38 grams with 9.6 grams of protein, 0.3 grams of carbohydrate and 62 milligrams of sodium. The U.S. large egg white contains about 20 calories.^[2] Egg white contains approximately 40 different proteins.^[3] Below is a list of the proteins found in egg whites by percentage along with their natural functions. A representation of the 3D structure of myoglobin showing coloured alpha helices. ... For other uses, see Mineral (disambiguation). ... Retinol (one vitamer of Vitamin A) A vitamin is an organic compound required as a nutrient in tiny amounts by an organism. ... Glucose (Glc), a monosaccharide (or simple sugar), is an important carbohydrate in biology. ... Lactose is a disaccharide found in milk. ... For sodium in the diet, see Salt. ... Etymology: French calorie, from Latin calor (heat), from calere (to be warm). ...

• Ovalbumin 54% Nourishment; blocks digestive enzymes
• Ovotransferrin 12% Binds iron
• Ovomucoid 11% Blocks digestive enzymes
• Globulins 8% Plugs defects in membranes, shell
• Lysozyme 3.5% Enzyme that digests bacterial cell walls
• Ovomucin 1.5% Thickens egg white; inhibits viruses
• Avidin .06% Binds vitamin (biotin)
• Others 10% Bind vitamins, block digestive enzymes...

^[4] The egg white is a clear liquid (also called albumen or ovalbumin) contained within a birds egg. ... Ovotransferrin is a glycoprotein of egg white albumen. ... Ovomucin is a trypsin inhibitor found in egg white. ... Globulin is one of the two types of serum proteins, the other being albumin. ... Lysozyme single crystal. ... Ovomucin is a trypsin inhibitor found in egg white. ... Avidin is a protein found in egg white that binds with biotin, found in egg yolk. ...

Egg white is also conspicuously lacking in dietary cholesterol, which is a target component for reduction in the American diet.^[5]

Uses

• It is often separated and used for cooking (for glairs, meringues, soufflés, and some omelets), hence it derives its name: when egg white is beaten or cooked it turns white.
• In recipes calling for egg yolk, two egg whites can often be used to replace one egg yolk.^[5]
• In schools it is often used to teach pupils how to test for protein using Biuret reagent.
• It is used to remove sediments from champagne and beer and to clarify broths.
• It was used in the emulsion of traditional photographic paper.
• It was used in medieval medicine to treat wounds and broken bones.^[6]
• They are recommended for consumption by chemotherapy and renal patients as a source of 90.0g of lean protein.^[7][8]
• It is used by athletes and bodybuilders as a health food supplement.^[9]
• It can be used as a base for waterproof glues. ^[10]

Separating eggs is a process usually used in cooking, in which one removes the egg yolk from the egg white. ... Lemon meringue muffins For the Dominican folk dance and the music it is performed to, see merengue. ... A soufflé is a light, fluffy, baked dish made with egg yolks and beaten egg whites combined with various other ingredients and served as a savory main dish or sweetened as a dessert. ... An Omelette or omelet is a preparation of beaten egg cooked with butter or oil in a frying pan, often folded around a filling. ... The Biuret reagent is made of potassium hydroxide (KOH) and copper (II) sulfate (CuSO4), together with potassium sodium tartrate (KNaC4H4O6·4H2O). ... This article is about Champagne, the alcoholic beverage. ... For other uses, see Beer (disambiguation). ... Broth is a liquid in which bones, meat, fish, cereal grains, or vegetables have been simmered and strained out. ... The albumen print, invented in 1850 by Louis Désiré Blanquart-Evrard, was the first commercially exploitable method of producing a print on a paper base from a negative. ... Chemotherapy, in its most general sense, refers to treatment of disease by chemicals that kill cells, specifically those of micro-organisms or cancer. ... Kidneys viewed from behind with spine removed The kidneys are bean-shaped excretory organs in vertebrates. ... Bodybuilder Anders Graneheim (Sweden) Bodybuilding is the sport of developing muscle fibers through the combination of weight training, increased caloric intake, and rest. ...

Nutrition

Biotin deficiency can be caused by excessive consumption of raw egg whites over a long period (months to years). Egg whites contain high levels of avidin, a protein that binds the vitamin biotin strongly. Biotin deficiency can have a very serious, even fatal, outcome if it is allowed to progress without treatment. ... Avidin is a protein found in egg white that binds with biotin, found in egg yolk. ... Retinol (one vitamer of Vitamin A) A vitamin is an organic compound required as a nutrient in tiny amounts by an organism. ... Vitamin H redirects here. ...

Denaturation

All proteins, including those in egg white, are made of long chains of amino acids which are similar to beads on a string. In a raw egg, these chains are raveled up in a specifically arranged compact mass. Chemical bonds and interactions between the amino acids within each protein hold this mass in a specific shape and stop it from unraveling. As an egg cooks, the heat causes the bonds within the proteins to break, a process called denaturation.^[11] As these proteins chains unfold and entangle with other proteins, new bonds form between these amino acids and the amino acids of neighboring proteins, causing the texture to change. This article is about the class of chemicals. ... Denaturation is a structural change in biomolecules such as nucleic acids and proteins, usually caused by heat, acids, bases, detergents, or certain chemicals such as urea. ...

Egg white foam

Creating an egg foam

The physical stress of beating the egg white can create a foam. There are two types of physical stress caused by the beating of the egg whites with a whisk, the first being that the whisk drags the liquid through itself creating a force that unfolds the protein molecules. This process is called denaturation. The second stress comes from the mixing of air into the whites which causes the proteins to come out of their natural state. These denatured proteins gather together where the air and water meet and create multiple bonds with the other unraveled proteins and thus becomes a foam holding the incorporated air into place.^[12] Denaturation is a structural change in biomolecules such as nucleic acids and proteins, usually caused by heat, acids, bases, detergents, or certain chemicals such as urea. ...

Stabilizing egg white foam for culinary purposes

Copper Bowl

Copper bowls have been used in France since the 18th century to stabilize egg foams. The copper in the bowl assists in creating a tighter bond in reactive sulfur items such as egg whites. The bond created is so tight that the sulfurs are prevented from reacting with any other material. A silver plated bowl will have the same result as the copper bowl or a pinch of powdered copper supplement from a health store used in a glass bowl will yield the same result as well. Drawbacks of the copper bowl include the expense of the bowl itself, as well as the fact that the bowls are difficult to keep clean. Copper contamination from the bowl is minimal as a cup of foam will contain a tenth of one's daily normal intake level.^[13] For other uses, see Copper (disambiguation). ... (17th century - 18th century - 19th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 18th century refers to the century that lasted from 1701 through 1800. ... This article is about the chemical element. ...

Adding an acid

Cream of tartar (potassium bitartrate) is an acidic salt that can be used to change the pH of the egg white to an acidic range by boosting the number of free-floating hydrogen ions in the egg white. This has the effect of stabilizing the foam, and is therefore an alternative to using a copper bowl. 1/8 teaspoon/0.5g cream of tartar should be used per one egg white to create this effect. 1/2 teaspoon/2ml of lemon juice can also be used to create the same results.^[14] Cream of tartar is the potassium salt of tartaric acid, KHC4H4O6. ... For other uses, see acid (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see PH (disambiguation). ...

References

The American Heart Association (AHA) is a non-profit organization in the United States that fosters appropriate cardiac care in an effort to reduce disability and deaths caused by cardiovascular disease and stroke American Stroke Association Web site. ... 2008 (MMVIII) is the current year, a leap year that started on Tuesday of the Anno Domini (or common era), in accordance to the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 18th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... The National Kidney Foundation, Inc. ... Elmhurst College was founded in 1871. ...

Works cited

• Elmhurst College, Denaturation Protein
• Exploratorium, Anatomy of an Egg
• Gilbertus. Compendium Medicine Gilberti Anglici Tam Morborum Universalium Quam Particularium Nondum Medicis Sed & Cyrurgicis Utilissimum. Lugduni: Impressum per Jacobum Sacconum, expensis Vincentii de Portonariis, 1510.
• Good Eats, Let Them Eat Foam. DVD. Television Food Network, June, 13 2001.
• McGee, Harold. On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen. New York: Scribner, 2004.

Elmhurst College was founded in 1871. ... Smoke billows at the exploratorium The Exploratorium is a public science museum located in the Marina District at the Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco, California. ...

See also

• Egg (food)
• Egg yolk
• Eggshell
• Cooking

Chicken egg (left) and quail eggs (right), the types of egg commonly used as food An egg is a body consisting of an ovum surrounded by layers of membranes and an outer casing of some type, which acts to nourish and protect a developing embryo. ... An egg yolk surrounded by the egg white An egg yolk is the part of an egg which serves as the food source for the developing embryo inside. ... The intact white shell of a chicken egg. ... Cooking is the act of preparing food. ...

External links

• How to make albumen photographic paper