Dough rheological properties and noodle-making performance of non-waxy and waxy whole-wheat flour blends

Dough rheological properties and noodle-making performance of non-waxy whole-wheat flour (WWF) with partial- or full-waxy (PW- or FW-) WWF substitution were studied. The substitution levels were 0, 250, 500, 750, and 1000 g/kg, respectively. FW-WWF reduced the peak viscosity and pasting temperature of WWF blends as its substitution level was increased due to its higher proportions of B-type starch granules and short amylopectin chains, while PW-WWF increased peak viscosity with the increasing substitution level because of its higher amylopectin content. As demonstrated by farinograph and rheometer measurements, FW-WWF interfered with gluten development because of the increased competition for water by arabinoxylans and amylopectin; however, PW-WWF enhanced dough strength due primarily to its increased protein content. Consequently, FW-WWF showed a detrimental effect on cooked noodle texture as the cooked noodle hardness was reduced by 50% at the 1000 g/kg substitution level. In contrast, PW-WWF enhanced noodle integrity and elasticity by increasing cooked noodle cohesiveness and resilience by 10.1% and 14.8%, respectively, at the 1000 g/kg substitution level. The results suggest that with waxy WWF substitution, the changes in starch composition, arabinoxylans, and protein content could modify the interactions among flour components and influence the quality characteristics of noodle products.     

The molecular structure features-immune stimulatory activity of arabinoxylans derived from the pentosan faction of wheat flour

Recently, the immune stimulation properties of cereal arabinoxylans (AX) have been reported. The aims of this study were to identify the molecular features and potential immune stimulation activities of AX and enzymatic modified arabinoxylan (AXE) from the pentosan fraction of wheat flour.The results of molecular characterization of AX and AXE show that AXE contains a larger portion (85.7%) of low Mw arabinoxylans (≤25 kDa) and has a higher degree of branch substitution (0.81 ± 0.01) compared to AX (49.5% and 0.62 ± 0.02). In in vitro testing, the ability of AX and AXE to stimulate immune cells, as measured by NO₂⁻ production by U937 cells and IL-8 secretion by Caco-2 cells were found to be dose–dependent in the range tested (100–5000 μg/mL p ≤ 0.05). AXE showed a greater activity at each concentration (100–5000 μg/mML) than AX (p ≤ 0.05).In conclusion, the greater immune stimulating activity of AXE may be associated with its low Mw (≤25 kDa) and a higher degree of branch substitution (0.81 ± 0.01).     

Antioxidant properties of wheat and rye bran extracts obtained by pressurized liquid extraction with different solvents

Rye and wheat brans are valuable sources of bioactive compounds, which could be used for the development and commercialization of high added value functional ingredients such as dietary antioxidants. The aim of this study was to evaluate antioxidant potential of rye and wheat bran using different polarity solvents. Cereal brans were ground to four different particle size fractions and extracted at 10.3 MPa pressure and 80 °C temperature by consecutive application of hexane, acetone and methanol:water (80:20%). The highest extract yield was obtained from rye bran using methanol-water; particle size in most cases had a significant effect. Antioxidant potential of extracts was assessed by ABTS^+•, DPPH^• scavenging, ORAC and total phenols content (TPC) assays. Extraction solvent had a major influence on TPC and antioxidant activity of the extracts. The most active extracts were obtained using methanol:water; rye bran extracts, in general, were stronger antioxidants than wheat bran extracts. For the majority of assays, reduction of particle size resulted in higher antioxidant activity values. However, ABTS^+• scavenging was found to decrease by decreasing particle size of rye bran used for extraction.     

Quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa Willd.) protein hydrolysates with in vitro dipeptidyl peptidase IV (DPP-IV) inhibitory and antioxidant properties

The potential of quinoa to act as a source of dipeptidyl peptidase IV (DPP-IV) inhibitory and antioxidant peptides was studied. A quinoa protein isolate (QPI) with a purity of 40.73 ± 0.90% was prepared. The QPI was hydrolysed at 50 °C for 3 h with two enzyme preparations: papain (P) and a microbial papain-like enzyme (PL) to yield quinoa protein hydrolysates (QPHs). The hydrolysates were evaluated for their DPP-IV inhibitory and oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC) activities. Protein hydrolysis was observed in the QPI control, possibly due to the activity of quinoa endogenous proteinases. The QPI control had significantly higher DPP-IV half maximal inhibitory concentrations (IC₅₀) and lower ORAC values than QPH-P and QPH-PL (P < 0.05). Both QPH-P and QPH-PL had similar DPP-IV IC₅₀ and ORAC values. QPH-P had a DPP-IV IC₅₀ value of 0.88 ± 0.05 mg mL⁻¹ and an ORAC activity of 501.60 ± 77.34 μmol Trolox equivalent (T.E.) g⁻¹. To our understanding, this is the first study demonstrating the in vitro DPP-IV inhibitory properties of quinoa protein hydrolysates. QPHs may have potential as functional ingredients with serum glucose lowering properties.     

Phenolic compounds,antioxidant capacity and gelling properties of glucoarabinoxylans from three types of sorghum brans

Arabinose to xylose ratio (A/X), phenolics, antioxidant capacity and gelling properties were evaluated in glucoarabinoxylans (GAX) extracted from white (W-GAX), red (R-GAX) and high tannin (T-GAX) sorghum brans (SB). The characterization of arabinoxylans from corn fiber (CFAX) was used as benchmark. Sorghum GAX had higher branched structure (A/X 1.08–1.41) than CFAX (0.59). Nine 3-deoxyanthocyanins (3-DAs) were identified in SB and two glycosylated forms remained associated to the R-GAX and T-GAX extracts. T-GAX was the only that contained tannins (0.41 mg catechin equivalents (CE)/g dry basis (db)) and exerted the highest antioxidant capacity (81.75 mM Trolox equivalents (TE)/g db) followed by R-GAX (48.49 mM TE/g db), which contained the highest amount of 3-DAs (0.11 mg Luteolinidin equivalents (Lut eq)/g db), and W-GAX (35.45 mM TE/g db) that was not significantly different from the CFAX (25.83 mM TE/g db). Among sorghums, only the W-GAX gelled but it formed a weaker gel compared to CFAX likely due to its lower hydroxycinnamic acids (HCA) concentration. The presence of 3-DAs in the structure of R-GAX and T-GAX affected negatively their solubility and gelling properties. The different SB showed potential as sources of GAX with antioxidant capacity.     

Influence of the cultivar,environment and management on the grain yield and bread-making quality in winter wheat

The genotype, environment and their interaction play an important role in the grain yielding and grain quality attributes. The main aim of this study was to determine the contributions of the genotype, environment and their interaction to the variation in bread-making traits. The data that were used for the analyses performed in this study were obtained from 3 locations in Poland from post-registration multi-environment trials with winter wheat in 2009 and 2010. The experimental factors were the cultivar (7 cultivars) and the crop management level (low input and high input). In the multi-environment trials, 17 traits were investigated that characterize grain, flour and dough quality. Most of the traits were affected much more strongly by environmental factors (i.e., year and location) than by genotype. The variance components revealed an especially strong effect of the year on the baking score, loaf volume and water absorption, as well a strong effect of the location on dough development and protein content. The obtained results demonstrate that the grain quality as measured by the parameters based on the protein content and quality may be substantially improved by crop management practices, especially by N fertilization level.     

Combined mutations in five wheat STARCH BRANCHING ENZYME II genes improve resistant starch but affect grain yield and bread-making quality

Increases in the proportion of amylose in the starch of wheat grains result in higher levels of resistant starch, a fermentable dietary fiber associated with human health benefits. The objective of this study was to assess the effect of combined mutations in five STARCH BRANCHING ENZYME II (SBEII) genes on starch composition, grain yield and bread-making quality in two hexaploid wheat varieties. Significantly higher amylose (∼60%) and resistant starch content (10-fold) was detected in the SBEII mutants than in the wild-type controls. Mutant lines showed a significant decrease in total starch (6%), kernel weight (3%) and total grain yield (6%). Effects of the mutations in bread-making quality included increases in grain hardness, starch damage, water absorption and flour protein content; and reductions in flour extraction, farinograph development and stability times, starch viscosity, and loaf volume. Several traits showed significant interactions between genotypes, varieties, and environments, suggesting that some of the negative impacts of the combined SBEII mutations can be ameliorated by adequate selection of genetic background and growing location. The deployment of wheat varieties with increased resistant starch will likely require economic incentives to compensate growers and millers for the significant reductions detected in grain and flour yields.     

Whole wheat bread: Effect of bran fractions on dough and end-product quality

Consumption of whole-wheat based products is encouraged due to their important nutritional elements that benefit human health. However, the use of whole-wheat flour is limited because of the poor processing and end-product quality. Bran was postulated as the major problem in whole wheat breadmaking. In this study, four major bran components including lipids, extractable phenolics (EP), hydrolysable phenolics (HP), and fiber were evaluated for their specific functionality in flour, dough and bread baking. The experiment was done by reconstitution approach using the 2⁴ factorial experimental layout. Fiber was identified as a main component to have highly significant (P < 0.05) and negative influence on most breadmaking characteristics. Although HP had positive effect on farinograph stability, it was identified as another main factor that negatively impacted the oven spring and bread loaf volume. Bran oil and EP seemed to be detrimental to most breadmaking characteristics. Overall, statistical analysis indicates that influence of the four bran components are highly complex. The bran components demonstrate multi-way interactions in regards to their influence on dough and bread-making characteristics. Particularly, Fiber appeared to have a high degree of interaction with other bran components and notably influenced the functionality of those components in whole wheat bread-making.     

Distribution of bioactive compounds in maize fractions obtained in two different types of large scale milling processes

Maize kernels contain different bioactive compounds that are important for human health. The aim of this study was to analyze the distribution of the bioactive compounds in maize fractions derived from two industrial dry-milling processes, characterized by a dry-degermination (DD) system and a tempering-degermination (TD) system.The bioactive compounds in maize resulted unevenly distributed in the milling fractions of the kernel. By-products such as the germ and the animal feed flour, had higher total antioxidant capacity (TAC), total polyphenol content (TPC) and total dietary fibre content (TDF) than the whole grains, while xanthophyll and resistant starch resulted to be higher in the fractions derived from the vitreous endosperm. The germ fraction showed also the highest folate content. Results also showed that the type of degermination process influences the bioactive compound contents in the milling fraction, in accordance to the effectiveness of the germ and bran removal from the endosperm fractions. In particular, the animal feed flour obtained by means of TD system resulted in a higher TAC, TPC and TDF than the same fraction obtained by means of the DD system. Conversely, the extraction rate do not affect the recovery of bioactive components in particular fractions.     

Valorization of the whole grains of Triticum aestivum L. and Triticum vulgare L. through the investigation of their biochemical composition and in vitro antioxidant,anti-inflammatory,anticancer and anticalpain activities

Two locally grown wheat species named Triticum aestivum L. and Triticum vulgare L. were studied for their phytochemical contents and their biological activities. T. vulgare presented the highest amounts of total phenolic compounds and ascorbic acids while T. aestivum was found to be rich in flavonoids, flavonols, proanthocynidins and ortho-diphenols. Eleven carotenoids were identified in T. vulgare where the most dominant compounds belongs to α-carotene and its derivatives while T. aestivum presented seven carotenoids. This later presented the highest DPPH radical scavenging activity and exhibited a strong reducing power in FRAP, phosphomolybdenum, hydrogen peroxide and reducing power assays. T. vulgare extract was found to be effective in metal chelating power and in scavenging nitric oxide radical. No significant differences in scavenging ABTS and hydroxyl radicals were noted between the two wheat species. T. aestivum inhibited xanthine oxidase and ROS production and showed the best cytotoxic effect while T. vulgare extract exhibited anti-calpain activity.     

Investigating the impact of α-amylase, α-glucosidase and glucoamylase action on yeast-mediated bread dough fermentation and bread sugar levels

Wheat flour is generally supplemented with α-amylases to increase maltose levels in bread dough and increase loaf volume. While the preference of yeast for glucose and fructose over maltose as substrate for fermentation is well documented, the impact of maltose versus glucose producing enzymes on bread dough fermentation kinetics and bread sugar levels is ill documented. Hence the impact of α-amylase, α-glucosidase and glucoamylase action on both aspects was investigated. Glucoamylase and α-amylase increase the total fermentable sugar content of dough, while α-glucosidase only affects the glucose/maltose ratio. Due to their effect on total fermentable sugar levels, addition of α-amylase or glucoamylase prolongs the total productive fermentation time, while this is not the case for α-glucosidase. In contrast to α-amylase, both glucoamylase and α-glucosidase supplementation leads to higher CO₂ production rates during the initial stages of fermentation. In the final bread product, different sugar levels are observed depending on the dosage and type of starch-degrading enzyme. The results of this study imply that long and short fermentation processes benefit from α-amylase and α-glucosidase addition, respectively, while glucoamylase supplementation is suitable for both long and short fermentation times.     

Dehydration of gluten matrix as a result of dietary fibre addition – A study on model flour with application of FT-IR spectroscopy

Nowadays, consumers demand dietary fibre-enriched products of appropriate taste, texture, smell and appearance. Unfortunately, addition of the dietary fibre supplements to bread significantly reduces its quality which is connected with changes in the structure of gluten proteins. Structural changes as well as changes in the water state of gluten matrix induced by eight dietary fibres were observed by using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. To facilitate this the difference spectra were calculated by subtraction of the control (gluten only) infrared spectrum from the spectra of gluten-fibre mixtures. The presence of positive bands at ca. 1597 and 1235 cm⁻¹ indicated aggregation of gluten proteins into hydrogen bonded β-sheets. These β-sheets can be formed by other β-sheets, antiparallel-β-sheets, β-turns and/or α-helices. The aggregation is probably induced by partial dehydration of gluten matrix due to competition for water molecules between gluten proteins and fibre polysaccharides. This assumption is confirmed by the presence of the negative band at 3237 cm⁻¹ and decrease in the intensity of the band at 3051 cm⁻¹. These bands are assigned to the weak and strong H-bonds in the gluten matrix, respectively. The results indicated that both weak and strong H-bonds are necessary to dough formation of adequate rheological properties.     

Adapting wheat in Europe for climate change

Increasing cereal yield is needed to meet the projected increased demand for world food supply of about 70% by 2050. Sirius, a process-based model for wheat, was used to estimate yield potential for wheat ideotypes optimized for future climatic projections for ten wheat growing areas of Europe. It was predicted that the detrimental effect of drought stress on yield would be decreased due to enhanced tailoring of phenology to future weather patterns, and due to genetic improvements in the response of photosynthesis and green leaf duration to water shortage. Yield advances could be made through extending maturation and thereby improve resource capture and partitioning. However the model predicted an increase in frequency of heat stress at meiosis and anthesis. Controlled environment experiments quantify the effects of heat and drought at booting and flowering on grain numbers and potential grain size. A current adaptation of wheat to areas of Europe with hotter and drier summers is a quicker maturation which helps to escape from excessive stress, but results in lower yields. To increase yield potential and to respond to climate change, increased tolerance to heat and drought stress should remain priorities for the genetic improvement of wheat.     

Characterisation of starch during germination and seedling development of a rice mutant with a high content of resistant starch

To acquire a better understanding of whether RS influences the dynamics of in vivo starch digestion and seed vigour, the high-RS rice mutant RS4 (RS ca. 10%) and the wild type R7954 were used to investigate total amylase activity, seedling vigour, starch content and starch granule structure during germination. RS4 exhibited similar seed vigour to R7954. Amylose and amylopectin in R7954 showed synchronous degradation throughout the whole process, while amylopectin was hydrolysed significantly faster than amylose in RS4 during the earlier germination stages. The starch residues of RS4 after germination (GD) lost endotherm peaks and showed a special X-ray diffraction pattern with only two peaks at around 16.90° and 21.62°, probably due to remnants of amylopectin and its tight crosslinking with the cell wall. The remaining starch after 10 GD, primarily amylopectin may make a critical contribution to total resistant starch content. These results indicated that RS had no negative impact on seed vigour in rice lines, although RS cannot be hydrolysed by α-amylase from human and animal in vitro. By appropriately increasing the special amylopectin fraction, a new breeding programme of high RS crops and improvement in the eating quality of high RS rice varieties might be achieved.     

Effects of particle size on the quality attributes of reconstituted whole-wheat flour and tortillas made from it

The objective of this study was to examine the effects of whole-wheat flour (WWF) particle size on the quality attributes of WWF tortillas. WWF samples of different particle size distributions from commercial U.S. hard white (median diameters: 175.7, 128.6, 120.0, 108.5 and 102.4 μm), hard red winter (median diameters: 173.7, 133.6, 124.3, 110.8 and 104.2 μm) and hard red spring (median diameters: 173.7, 132.1, 124.7, 112.9, 106.3 μm) wheat classes were obtained by fine grinding of bran and shorts and re-combining with the rest of fractions. For all three wheat classes, as WWF median particle size decreased, the L* (lightness) value decreased but the adjusted damaged starch, polyphenol oxidase activity, and a* and b* values increased. Mixolab data showed that development time decreased as WWF particle size was reduced, while stability time and starch retrogradation increased. As for WWF tortilla quality, the breaking force and extensibility increased with decreasing particle size from ∼175 to 129–134 μm, but diameter and thickness were not significantly affected. The results indicated that reducing the median particle sizes of WWFs from ∼175 μm to ∼130 μm would significantly improve the WWF tortilla quality.     

Optimisation of rheological properties of gluten-free doughs with HPMC,psyllium and different levels of water

Hydrocolloids have traditionally been investigated as an alternative to gluten for making good quality products for coeliac patients. This study investigated the interactions between hydroxypropylmethylcellulose (HPMC) (2–4 g/100 g of flour), psyllium (0–4 g/100 g of flour) and water level (90–110 g/100 g of flour) in gluten-free breadmaking. Psyllium incorporation reduced the pasting temperature and compliance values, and increased elastic (G′) and viscous (G″) moduli values. In contrast, HPMC addition had no important effects on pasting properties and compliance values, but also increased G′ and G″ values. Psyllium inclusion reduced bread specific volume and increased bread hardness, while there were hardly differences in the bread specific volume and hardness between the percentages of HPMC studied. In addition, when the dough hydration level was increased, there was a decrease in the influence of hydrocolloids on dough rheology and specific volume and hardness of breads.     

Effects of drought on the morphological and physicochemical characteristics of starch granules in different elite wheat varieties

In this study, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) revealed the formation of pits and pores on the surfaces of starch granules in response to drought stress, with substantially more pronounced effects in the ordinary yield potential wheat cv. Xindong 23 than the excellent yield potential wheat cv. Xindong 20. Drought induced a significant reduction in starch granule sizes in both wheat varieties, though the reduction observed in Xindong 23 was six times more pronounced than that observed for Xindong 20. Amyloglucosidase and α-amylase treatment of starch from wheat grown in drought conditions released significantly more reducing sugars compared with samples from irrigated controls. SEM and confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM) revealed that starch granules from the two wheat varieties grown under drought conditions had substantially increased fluorescence after treatment with proteolytic enzymes and staining with methanolic merbromin and 3-(4-carboxybenzoyl) quinoline-2-carboxaldehyde dyes. Analysis of pasting properties showed significant increases of peak viscosity, trough viscosity, break down, and setback following drought stresses. Furthermore, drought induced a significant reduction in the water binding capacity and increased damage to starch only in Xindong 23. These results provide insight into the potential mechanisms through which drought influences the ultrastructures and physicochemical properties of starch in wheat.     

Impact of pre-germination on amylopectin molecular structures,crystallinity, and thermal properties of pre-germinated brown rice starches

Ungerminated brown rice (UGBR) and pre-germinated brown rice (PGBR) obtained from different pre-germination durations were studied to investigate the changes in total starch contents of flour, amylopectin molecular structures, crystallinity, and thermal properties of starches as affected by pre-germination. Each paddy of three rice cultivars with different amylose contents (RD6, waxy; KDML105, low amylose; and RD31, high amylose) was soaked in water at 30°C for 12 h and incubated over different periods until the three stages of embryonic growth length (EGL) were achieved. The total starch contents of three-stage PGBR flour from all rice cultivars decreased when pre-germination durations were increased. The three-stage PGBR starches from the three rice cultivars had lower weight-average molecular weight (Mw) and number-average molecular weight (Mn) than UGBR starches. All starches from the three rice cultivars displayed an A-type X-ray diffraction pattern (XRD). Isolated UGBR starch from RD6 had the highest (31.33%) relative crystallinity (RC), while RD31 showed the lowest RC (26.79%). The slight increases in the RC of three-stage PGBR starches from three rice cultivars were found after pre-germination. Isolated PGBR starches from the three rice cultivars had higher gelatinization temperatures and enthalpy, but lower retrogradation enthalpy and %retrogradation than UGBR starches.     

Effect of microwave radiation on dry bean seed infected with Xanthomonas axonopodis pv. phaseoli with and without the use of chemical seed treatment

Common bacterial blight (Xanthomonas axonopodis pv. phaseoli) is a seed-borne disease that is difficult to control in dry bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.). Laboratory and field studies were conducted over a two-year period to determine the effect of microwave radiation on navy (cv. Navigator and Envoy) and pinto (cv. AC Ole) bean. Laboratory tests resulted in a 12 to 25% decrease in germination following 50–60 s of radiation, while less than a 10% loss was observed between 0 and 40 s. Pathogen viability was also tested, however the incidence of pathogen infection was low and no correlation was observed between exposure time and the incidence of colonization. In field studies conducted at Morden, MB (2012) and Ridgetown and Exeter, ON (2012–2013) microwave radiation and two chemical seed treatments (copper hydroxide 53.8% and pyraclostrobin + fluxapyroxad + metalaxyl) were evaluated for their effect on emergence, disease infection, seed pick, yield and return on investment. The application of microwave treatment decreased emergence by up to 7%, but did not impact the other parameters measured. Chemical treatment alone or in combination with microwave treatment also did not affect emergence, disease incidence, yield, seed pick, or return on investment.     

Modeling the effects of microfluidization conditions on properties of corn bran

Corn bran was microfluidized through a 200-μm channel in the pressure range of 124.1–158.7 MPa for 1–5 passes following the central composite experimental design. Physicochemical properties and antioxidant properties of microfluidized bran samples were measured and fitted to the second order polynomial model. The response surface equations obtained showed that all the properties examined had a positive linear relationship with pressure and a negative quadratic relationship with number of passes except for ABTS radical scavenging activity which was quadratically related to both processing parameters. The number of passes generally had a more pronounced effect on the examined properties compared with pressure. Within the experimental range, the maximum values of swelling capacity, water-holding capacity, and oil-holding capacity were respectively 10.62 ml/g d.w. (at 158.7 MPa), 5.49 g water/g d.w. (at 158.7 MPa), and 4.61 g oil/g d.w. (at 124.1 MPa); the maximum values of surface reactive phenolic content, DPPH and ABTS radical scavenging activities were 148.80 mg/FAE g d.w. (at 158.7 MPa), 50.02 μmol TE/g d.w. (at 158.7 MPa), and 47.90 μmol TE/g d.w. (at 145.9 MPa), respectively. All maximum values of the properties occurred at 5 passes.