Near-infrared analysis of soluble and insoluble dietary fiber fractions of cereal food products

The use of near-infrared (NIR) reflectance spectroscopy for the rapid and accurate measurement of soluble and insoluble dietary fiber was explored in a diverse group of cereal products. Ground samples were analyzed for soluble and insoluble dietary fiber (AOAC Method 991.43) and scanned (NIRSystems 6500 monochromator) to obtain NIR spectra. Modified PLS models were developed to predict insoluble and soluble dietary fiber using data sets expanded to include products with high fat and high sugar contents. The models predicted insoluble dietary fiber accurately with an SECV of 1.54% and an R(2) of 0.98 (AOAC determined range of 0-48.77%) and soluble dietary fiber less accurately with an SECV of 1.15% and an R(2) of 0.82 (AOAC determined range of 0-13.84%). Prediction of independent validation samples by the soluble fiber model resulted in a bias that may be related to the way the reference method treats samples with different soluble fiber constituents. The insoluble fiber model can be used to rapidly monitor insoluble dietary fiber in cereal products for nutrition labeling.     

Biodegradation of oxalic acid from spinach using cereal radicles

A high level of oxalate intake constitutes a health risk for infants and metabolically disposed adults. Spinach, acclaimed for its many health benefits, is among the vegetables richest in oxalate. Blanching reduces oxalate unsatisfactorily and unspecifically. An alternative, biological method is proposed on the basis of rye seedlings or radicles (also barley and wheat) containing an oxalate-specific oxalate oxidase by nature. Dissolved oxalate (0.25 mM) was rapidly degraded in the presence of radicles (e.g., 70% within 100 min). With commercial deep-frozen spinach, near-complete degradation of soluble oxalate was achieved at pH 3.5. The total level of oxalate was reduced by half. Similarly high rates occurred from 18 to 35 degrees C. Even at 55 degrees C appreciable rates were observed. The seedling as a whole is effective, too, and enrichment with cereal-specific healthy components would occur. Removal of oxalate from other vegetables, juices, cycled process waters, or feeds is conceivable with fresh or heat-dried cereal seedlings or radicles.     

超声辅助提取水不溶性大豆膳食纤维及其物理特性

为研究超声辅助提取对豆渣中水不溶性大豆膳食纤维提取效率及物理特性的影响,该文以超声波为辅助,在液料比、超声功率强度、超声温度和超声时间4个单因素试验的基础上,通过四元二次通用旋转组合设计试验优化超声辅助提取水不溶性大豆膳食纤维的工艺条件,并采用扫描电镜、红外光谱仪等对超声辅助、酸溶碱沉、酶解辅助提取所获得的水不溶性大豆膳食纤维产品进行了物理特性表征。优化试验结果表明,在液料比35 mL/g、超声功率强度600 W/g、超声温度50℃、间歇性超声处理累计时间50 min条件下水不溶性大豆膳食纤维提取率较高,达92.11%。物性分析结果显示,与酸溶碱沉、酶解辅助提取的水不溶性大豆膳食纤维相比,超声辅助提取的水不溶性大豆膳食纤维具有更高的持水力、溶胀力、结合水力和结合脂肪能力以及更丰富的空间网状结构。研究结果揭示,超声辅助提取法不仅能够提高豆渣中水不溶性大豆膳食纤维的提取率,而且对其加工性能有很好的改进作用。     

NMR characterization of lignins isolated from fruit and vegetable insoluble dietary fiber

Compositional information for lignins in food is rare and concentrated on cereal grains and brans. As lignins are suspected to have important health roles in the dietary fiber complex, the confusing current information derived from nonspecific lignin determination methods needs to be augmented by diagnostic structural studies. For this study, lignin fractions were isolated from kiwi, pear, rhubarb, and, for comparison, wheat bran insoluble dietary fiber. Clean pear and kiwi lignin isolates allowed for substantive structural profiling, but it is suggested that the significance of lignin in wheat has been overestimated by reliance on nonspecific analytical methods. Volume integration of NMR contours in two-dimensional (13)C-(1)H correlation spectra shows that pear and wheat lignins have comparable guaiacyl and syringyl contributions and that kiwi lignins are particularly guaiacyl-rich (approximately 94% guaiacyl) and suggest that rhubarb lignins, which could not be isolated from contaminating materials, are as syringyl-rich (approximately 96% syringyl) as lignins from any known natural or transgenic fiber source. Typical lignin structures, including those newly NMR-validated (glycerols, spirodienones, and dibenzodioxocins), and resinols implicated as possible mammalian lignan precursors in the gut are demonstrated via their NMR correlation spectra in the fruit and vegetable samples. A novel putative benzodioxane structure appears to be associated with the kiwi lignin. It is concluded that the fruits and vegetables examined contain authentic lignins and that the detailed structural analysis exposes limitations of currently accepted analytical methods.     

Structural identification of dehydrotriferulic and dehydrotetraferulic acids isolated from insoluble maize bran fiber

Two new dehydrotriferulic acids and two dehydrotetraferulic acids were isolated from saponified maize bran insoluble fiber using size exclusion chromatography on Bio-Beads S-X3 followed by Sephadex LH-20 chromatography and semipreparative phenyl-hexyl reversed phase high-performance liquid chromatography. On the basis of UV spectroscopy, mass spectrometry, and one- and two-dimensional NMR experiments, the structures were identified as 8-5(noncyclic)/5-5-dehydrotriferulic acid, 8-8(tetrahydrofuran)/5-5-dehydrotriferulic acid, and 4-O-8/5-5/8-O-4-dehydrotetraferulic acid. The second tetramer was tentatively identified as 4-O-8/5-5/8-5(noncyclic)-dehydrotetraferulic acid. Compounds containing an 8-5(noncyclic)-coupled dimeric unit probably do not exist in planta but are formed from their phenylcoumaran precursors containing an 8-5(cyclic)-coupled dimeric unit during saponification. The presented dehydrotrimers are the first dehydrotriferulates that do not contain an 8-O-4-coupled dimeric unit. The ferulate dehydrotetramers that are reported for the first time are presumed, like the dimers and trimers, to cross-link polysaccharides in the plant. Because both tetramers contain a 5-5/8-O-4-dehydrotriferulate moiety, the predominant dehydrotrimer in maize bran, it is not possible to deduce whether tetramers are formed by coupling of a fourth unit to a preformed dehydrotriferulate or by 5-5-coupling of preformed 8-O-4- and 8-5-dehydrodiferulates. Nevertheless, such compounds document expanded roles for ferulates in cross-linking polysaccharides in plant cell walls.     

超声波改善大蒜秸秆不溶性膳食纤维结构及吸附性

为了增强大蒜秸秆膳食纤维的功能特性,采用超声波对大蒜秸秆的不溶性膳食纤维(insoluble dietary fiber,IDF)进行改性处理。以提高葡萄糖吸附能力为目标,利用单因素试验和响应面法优化大蒜秸秆IDF的超声改性条件,通过胆固醇结合力、吸水性、持油性及膨胀能力等来评价改性后IDF的功能特性,并通过扫描电镜和红外光谱分析其结构变化。结果表明:液料质量比30:1、超声功率700 W和超声时间40 min时,大蒜秸秆IDF的葡萄糖吸附能力明显提高,比对照组提高了12.8%,胆固醇吸附力则提高了45.0%(P0.05);超声处理所得IDF的色泽品质和物理化学特性也明显优于对照组(P0.05);超声处理和对照IDF的红外吸收光谱基本相同,电镜结果显示超声波处理使IDF的组织结构变得更加疏松,其表面呈现蜂窝状,有助于表现出较强的吸附性,从而赋予大蒜秸秆IDF更强的功能品质和物理化学特性。     

红薯渣不溶性膳食纤维超高压改性

为增强红薯渣膳食纤维的生理功能,研究超高压对其理化性质的影响。该文以红薯渣为原料,采用均匀试验方法对不溶性膳食纤维产品理化性质进行超高压改性,并通过扫描电镜、毛细管电泳法、红外光谱、X射线衍射、比表面积测试法BET和粒度等手段研究改性对膳食纤维结构及理化性质的影响。结果表明:超高压改性不溶性膳食纤维的工艺条件如压力、时间、温度对其调节血糖、血脂、清除外源有害物质能力有显著影响。得出超高压对调节血糖、血脂能力改性条件:600MPa,15min,60℃;清除外源有害物质改性条件:100MPa,10min,42℃。通过对改性膳食纤维结构、理化性质测定发现,改性红薯渣不溶性膳食纤维的微观结构为疏松、光滑、蜂巢形的多孔网状结构;其单糖组分没有太大影响,单糖含量产生了一定程度的变化;改性使结晶度减小,比表面积增大;特征吸收峰增强、红移和蓝移,同时也产生了一些新的吸收峰。研究结果可为红薯渣膳食纤维的功能改性及综合利用提供相关依据。     

2-O-(beta-D-Glucopyranosyl)ascorbic acid, a novel ascorbic acid analogue isolated from Lycium fruit

A novel stable precursor of ascorbic acid (vitamin C), 2-O-(beta-D-glucopyranosyl)ascorbic acid, was isolated from both the ripe fresh fruit and dried fruit of Lycium barbarum L., a plant of the Solanaceae family. The chemical structure was inferred by instrumental analyses and confirmed by chemical synthesis. The dried fruit of Lycium barbarum L. contained ca. 0.5% of it, which is comparable to the ascorbic acid content of fresh lemons. It increased the blood ascorbic acid by oral administration to rats, and it was also detected in blood from the portal vein.     

Micronization increases vitamin E carrying and releasing abilities of insoluble fiber

This study was to investigate the effects of micronization on vitamin-carrying capacity and slow-release ability of carambola (starfruit) insoluble fiber (IF) and cellulose using in vitro and in vivomodels. Upon micronization, carambola IF (8.1 microm) underwent structural changes to expose more functional groups in the fiber matrix and to exhibit higher oil-holding capacity ( approximately 20.4-fold). Micronized fibers in forms of fiber-vitamin composites, particularly the micronized carambola IF-vitamin composite, were capable of carrying vitamin E (alpha-tocopherol) up to 9.6-fold over their unmicronized forms and releasing nutrient gradually. Animal studies demonstrated that the adminstration of micronized carambola IF-vitamin composite could maintain the plasma vitamin E of rats at relatively higher levels (2.1-3.6-fold of the initial values) for at least 5 h. The results suggested that micronized fibers, particularly the micronized carambola IF, could be exploited as potential nutrient carriers in food applications and also be used to produce slow-release formulations.     

Purification and biochemical characterization of insoluble acid invertase (INAC-INV) from pea seedlings

Invertase (EC 3.2.1.26) catalyzes the hydrolysis of sucrose into D-glucose and D-fructose. Insoluble acid invertase (INAC-INV) was purified from pea (Pisum sativum L.) by sequential procedures entailing ammonium sulfate precipitation, ion exchange chromatography, absorption chromatography, reactive green-19 affinity chromatography, and gel filtration. The purified INAC-INV had a pH optimum of 4.0 and a temperature optimum of 45 °C. The effects of various concentrations of Tris-HCl, HgCl(2), and CuSO(4) on the activities of the purified invertase were examined. INAC-INV was not affected by Tris-HCl and HgCl(2). INAC-INV activity was inhibited by 6.2 mM CuSO(4) up to 50%. The enzymes display typical hyperbolic saturation kinetics for sucrose hydrolysis. The K(m) and V(max) values of INAC-INV were determined to be 4.41 mM and 8.41 U (mg protein)(-1) min(-1), respectively. INAC-INV is a true member of the β-fructofuranosidases, which can react with sucrose and raffinose as substrates. SDS-PAGE and immunoblotting were used to determine the molecular mass of INAC-INV to be 69 kDa. The isoelectric point of INAC-INV was estimated to be about pH 8.0. Taken together, INAC-INV is a pea seedling invertase with a stable and optimum activity at lower acid pH and at higher temperature than other invertases.     

Determination of total dietary fiber of intact cereal food products by near-infrared reflectance

Near-infrared reflectance spectra of cereal food products were acquired with a commercial dual-diode-array (Si, InGaAs) spectrometer customized to allow rapid acquisition of scans of intact breakfast cereals, snack foods, whole grains, and milled products. Substantial gains in the performance of multivariate calibration models generated from these data were obtained by a computational strategy that systematically analyzed the performance of various spectral windows. The calibration model based on 137 cereal food products determined the total dietary fiber (TDF) content of a test set of 45 intact diverse cereal food products with root-mean-squared error of cross-validation of between 1.8 and 2.0% TDF, relative to the laborious enzymatic-gravimetric reference method. The calibration performance is adequate to estimate TDF over the range of values found in diverse types of cereal food products (0.7-50.1%). The method requires no sample preparation and is relatively unaffected by specimen moisture content.     

Particle size reduction effectively enhances the cholesterol-lowering activities of carrot insoluble fiber and cellulose

This study investigated and compared the effects of particle size reduction on the cholesterol-lowering activities of carrot insoluble fiber-rich fraction (IFF) and plant cellulose. Our results demonstrated that micronization treatment effectively pulverized the particle sizes of these insoluble fibers to different microsizes. Feeding the micronized insoluble fibers, particularly the micronized carrot IFF, significantly (p < 0.05) improved their abilities in lowering the concentrations of serum triglyceride (18.6-20.0%), serum total cholesterol (15.5-19.5%), and liver lipids (16.7-20.3%) to different extents by means of enhancing (p < 0.05) the excretion of lipids (124-131%), cholesterol (120-135%), and bile acids (130-141%) in feces. These results suggested that particle size was one of the crucial factors in affecting the characteristics and physiological functions of insoluble fibers. Therefore, particle size reduction by micronization might offer the industry an opportunity to improve the physiological functions of insoluble fibers, particularly the carrot IFF, in health food applications.     

Biochemical and microstructural Ccharacteristics of insoluble and soluble dietary fiber prepared from mushroom sclerotia of Pleurotus tuber-regium, Polyporus rhinocerus, and Wolfiporia cocos

The proximate composition of sclerotia of Pleurotus tuber-regium, Polyporus rhinoceros, and Wolfiporia cocos, together with the yield, purity, monosaccharide profile, and microstructure of their insoluble dietary fiber (IDF) and soluble dietary fiber (SDF) fractions prepared from AOAC enzymatic-gravimetric methods were investigated and compared. All three sclerotia were typical carbohydrate rich sclerotia [ranging from 90.5 to 98.1% dry matter (DM)] with an exceptionally low amount of crude lipid content (ranging from 0.02 to 0.14% DM). Besides, all three sclerotia possessed substantial amounts of IDF (ranging from 77.4 to 94.6% DM) with notably high levels of nonstarch polysaccharides (NSP) (89.9-92.2% DM) in which glucose was the predominant sugar residue (90.6-97.2% of NSP DM). On the contrary, both the yield (only ranging from 1.45 to 2.50% DM) and the amount of NSP (ranging from 22.4 to 29.6% DM) of the three sclerotial SDF fractions were very low. Scanning electron micrographs showed fragments of interwoven hyphae and insoluble materials in the three sclerotial IDF fractions, but only an amorphous structure of soluble materials was observed in the SDF fractions. The potential use of these fiber preparations was discussed.     

The importance of lactic acid bacteria for phytate degradation during cereal dough fermentation

Lactic acid fermentation of cereal flours resulted in a 100 (rye), 95-100 (wheat), and 39-47% (oat) reduction in phytate content within 24 h. The extent of phytate degradation was shown to be independent from the lactic acid bacteria strain used for fermentation. However, phytate degradation during cereal dough fermentation was positively correlated with endogenous plant phytase activity (rye, 6750 mU g(-1); wheat, 2930 mU g(-1); and oat, 23 mU g(-1)), and heat inactivation of the endogenous cereal phytases prior to lactic acid fermentation resulted in a complete loss of phytate degradation. Phytate degradation was restored after addition of a purified phytase to the liquid dough. Incubation of the cereal flours in buffered solutions resulted in a pH-dependent phytate degradation. The optimum of phytate degradation was shown to be around pH 5.5. Studies on phytase production of 50 lactic acid bacteria strains, previously isolated from sourdoughs, did not result in a significant production of intra- as well as extracellular phytase activity. Therefore, lactic acid bacteria do not participate directly in phytate degradation but provide favorable conditions for the endogenous cereal phytase activity by lowering the pH value.     

Treatment of cereal products with a tailored preparation of trichoderma enzymes increases the amount of soluble dietary fiber

Nutritionists recommend increasing the intake of soluble dietary fiber (SDF), which is very low in most cereal-based products. Conversion of insoluble DF (IDF) into SDF can be achieved by chemical treatments, but this affects the sensorial properties of the products. In this study, the possibility of getting a substantial increase of SDF from cereal products using a tailored preparation of Trichoderma enzymes is reported. Enzymes were produced cultivating Trichoderma using durum wheat fiber (DWF) and barley spent grain (BSG) as unique carbon sources. Many Trichoderma strains were screened, and the hydrolysis conditions able to increase by enzymatic treatment the amount of SDF in DWF and BSG were determined. Results demonstrate in both products that it is possible to triple the amount of SDF without a marked decrease of total DF. The enzymatic treatment also causes the release of hydroxycinnamic acids, mainly ferulic acid, that are linked to the polysaccharides chains. This increases the free phenolic concentration, the water-soluble antioxidant activity, and, in turn, the phenol compounds bioavailability.     

Determination of insoluble, soluble, and total dietary fiber in foods and food products: interlaboratory study

A collaborative study was conducted to determine the insoluble dietary fiber (IDF), soluble dietary fiber (SDF), and total dietary fiber (TDF) content of food and food products by using a combination of enzymatic and gravimetric procedures. The method was basically the same as that developed for TDF only, which was adopted official final action by AOAC, except for changing the concentration of buffer and base and substituting hydrochloric acid for phosphoric acid. These changes were made to improve the robustness of the method. Duplicate blind samples of soy isolate, white wheat flour, rye bread, potatoes, rice, corn bran, oats, Fabulous Fiber, wheat bran, and a high fiber cereal were analyzed by 13 collaborators. Dietary fiber values (IDF, SDF, and TDF) were calculated as the weight of residue minus the weight of protein and ash. The coefficients of variation (CVs) of both the independent TDF determination and the sum of IDF and SDF were better than 15 and 18%, respectively, with the exception of rice and soy isolate. These 2 foods, however, contained only about 1% TDF. The CVs of the IDF were equally good, except for Fabulous Fiber, for which filtration problems occurred. The CVs for the SDF were somewhat high, but these products had very low SDF content. There was excellent agreement between the TDF determined independently and the TDF determined by summing the IDF and SDF. The method for separate determination of IDF and SDF requires further study. The modifications (changes in concentration of buffer and base and the use of hydrochloric acid instead of phosphoric acid) to the official final action method for TDF have been adopted.     

Identification of simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers for acid detergent fiber in rice straw by bulked segregant analysis

Rice straw is a significant energy source for ruminant animals. The acid detergent fiber (ADF) content of rice straw is negatively related to intake potential of forages. Therefore, improving the digestibility of rice straw by reducing ADF content is a necessary goal in breeding programs. In the present study, simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers and the bulked segregant analysis (BSA) approach were used to identify molecular markers associated with ADF. A total of 121 BC1F1 plants derived from the cross of JX974 (a cultivar with high ADF, 36.6%) and Dongxiang wild rice (a wild rice with low ADF, 31.3%), with JX974 as a recurrent parent, were used to conduct BSA. Phenotypic analysis showed that ADF displayed a normal distribution in BC1F1 population, indicating the involvement of polygenes. A SSR marker, RM566 on chromosome 9, was identified for ADF. A small linkage map consisting of five markers was constructed by adding four other markers, and a quantitative trait locus (QTL) controlling ADF was mapped at the RM321-RM566 interval, with a distance of 3.9 cM to RM566. This QTL explained 12% of the total phenotypic variation of ADF, and its additive effect was 3%. This study is the first step to map QTL for ADF, one of the plant cell wall components in rice.