Source
Animal rennet: Rennet was first derived from the fourth gastric mucosa of calves, and then rennet was extracted from the stomachs of other animals. However, due to the unstable source of animal-derived rennet, and due to considerations of race, belief, etc., researchers have turned their research direction to microbial and plant-derived rennet.
Plant-derived rennet: Many plants contain a wide range of proteases that can coagulate milk. At present, the following types are more studied, including papain, fig protease, bromelain, ginger protease, albizin, artichoke protease, etc.
Microbial rennet: Microorganisms are the most promising source of rennet because of their short growth cycle, high yield, less time and space restrictions, low production cost, convenient extraction, and high economic benefits. Currently, more than 40 kinds of microorganisms have been found to produce rennet with a certain activity, mainly fungi, actinomycetes, bacteria, etc.
The solubility of chymosin is affected by pH, temperature and solution ionic strength. It is soluble in a NaCl solution with a pH of 5.5 and a concentration of 1 mol/L. The crystalline chymosin is relatively stable at 25°C, and its solubility increases with the increase of ionic strength. The isoelectric point of chymosin is pH 4.5, and it is most stable at pH 5.3-6.3, but its activity decreases at pH 3-4 due to self-degradation. Under alkaline conditions, irreversible conformational changes occur, which reduce its activity.