Food additives Europe numbers: E921
L-cystine is closely related to L-cysteine, the food excipient you just described. Here's a breakdown of L-cystine in the context of food additives:
- Chemical Relationship: L-cystine is actually formed by the linking of two L-cysteine molecules through a disulfide bond. So, it's essentially a dimer of L-cysteine.
- Limited Use in Food: Unlike L-cysteine, L-cystine is not widely used as a direct food excipient. There's limited information on its specific applications in commercially processed foods.
- Potential Applications (speculative): Some possibilities for its use in food (not confirmed as common practices) include:
- Dough conditioner: Similar to L-cysteine, it might theoretically contribute to dough structure and elasticity due to its building block role as an amino acid.
- Flavor enhancer: Like L-cysteine, it might have some savory or meaty flavoring properties.
- More Common as a Supplement: L-cystine is more commonly encountered as a dietary supplement, sometimes promoted for hair and skin health due to its role in protein structure (hair and skin are largely composed of protein). However, the evidence for these benefits is not conclusive.