Comparison of Polyphenol Oxidase Activities in Wheats and Flours from Australian and U.S. Cultivars

Polyphenol oxidase (PPO) activities of wheats from various classes and cultivars (grown both in the U.S.A. and in Australia), of some U.S. and Australian wheats, of wheat flours at various extraction rates and of kernels separated by size from various cultivars were measured by the oxygen electrode method. PPO activity of wheats was affected by both cultivar and growing location. Wheat flour contained on the average 3% of the PPO of the wheat grain. PPO activities of the flours increased as the flour extraction rates increased. Contrary to expectation, for a single cultivar, small kernels contained less PPO (on a weight basis and especially on a kernel basis) than did large kernels. Differences among kernels of various sizes for a single cultivar were smaller than differences in PPO among kernels of comparable sizes among various cultivars.     

Oligosaccharide Content and Composition of Legumes and Their Reduction by Soaking,Cooking, Ultrasound,and High Hydrostatic Pressure

Oligosaccharides, including raffinose, stachyose, ciceritol, and verbascose, are commonly found in legumes and often result in flatulence in humans. Effects of soaking, soaking with ultrasound (47 MHz), soaking with high hydrostatic pressure (HHP, 621 MPa), and subsequent cooking on the oligosaccharide content of lentils, chickpeas, peas, and soybeans were investigated. Legumes were soaked for 3 or 12 hr in water, soaked for 1.5 or 3 hr with ultrasound, or soaked for 0.5 or 1 hr with HHP. Oligosaccharides of lentils and chickpeas were mainly composed of raffinose, ciceritol, and stachyose, while those of peas and soybeans were raffinose and stachyose. Verbascose was the minor oligosaccharide in lentils and peas and was absent in chickpeas and soybeans. Ciceritol was not detected in peas and soybeans. Total oligosaccharide content of raw legumes ranged from 70.7 mg/g in yellow peas to 144.9 mg/g in chickpeas. Soaking was effective for the reduction of oligosaccharides in the tested legumes. Compared with soaking for 3 hr, soaking legumes with ultrasound for 3 hr in all tested legumes or soaking legumes with HHP for 1 hr, with exception of soybeans, appeared to be more effective for the reduction of oligosaccharides. The effect of cooking on the reduction of oligosaccharide content of presoaked legumes was evident in lentils, while oligosaccharide content of chickpeas, peas, and soybeans was either unchanged or even increased by cooking after presoaking, with or without ultrasound, probably due to the leaching of other soluble components and the release of bound oligosaccharides during cooking. During soaking or cooking of legumes, raffinose leached out faster than other oligosaccharides.     

Fortification of Bread with Hulls and Cotyledon Fibers Isolated from Peas,Lentils, and Chickpeas

Bread was prepared from wheat flour and wheat flour fortified with either 3, 5, and 7% legume hulls or insoluble cotyledon fibers, or with 1, 3, and 5% soluble cotyledon fibers isolated from pea, lentil, and chickpea flours. Incorporation of hulls or insoluble fibers resulted in increases in dough water absorption by 2–16% and increases in mixing time of dough by 22–147 sec. Addition of soluble fiber resulted in decreases in water absorption as the substitution rate increased and similar mixing times to the control dough. Loaf weights of breads containing hulls or insoluble fibers were generally higher than that of control bread at 149.4–166.5 g. However, the loaf volume of breads fortified with legume hulls and fibers (685–1,010 mL) was lower than that of the control bread (1,021 mL). Breads containing soluble fibers were more attractive in terms of crumb uniformity and color than breads containing either hulls or insoluble fibers. Breads fortified with legume hulls and fibers were higher in moisture content than control bread regardless of the type, source, or fortification rate. Bread fortified with up to 7% hulls or insoluble cotyledon fibers or up to 3% soluble cotyledon fibers, with the exception of 7% insoluble pea fiber, exhibited similar firmness after seven days of storage compared with the control bread, despite their smaller loaf volume. Breads containing hull fibers exhibited the lowest starch transition enthalpies as determined by DSC after seven days of storage, while the starch transition enthalpies of breads containing added soluble or insoluble fiber were not significantly different from the control bread.     

Correlations between carcass traits and mRNA levels of CGI-105 and CCAAT/enhancer protein α genes in steers of Korean cattle

To understand the molecular mechanisms that regulate intramuscular fat deposition (marbling), cDNA clones expressed in adipose tissues of Korean cattle were identified and characterized. One clone had a total length of 1262 nucleotides coding for 314 amino acids. It was identified as one encoding bovine homolog of human CGI-105 mRNA. CGI-105 is a member of fumarylacetoacetate hydrolase family. Comparison of the deduced amino acid sequences of bovine CGI-105 with those of human revealed more than 89% identity. High levels of CGI-105 mRNA expression were detected in muscle, heart, and kidney tissues among various bovine tissues. Carcass traits, including backfat thickness, rib eye area, yield index, marbling score, and quality grade were analyzed in steer of Korean cattle. A CCAAT/enhancer binding protein alpha (C/EBPα) is one of adipocyte differentiation factors that may affect deposition of fat in muscle. mRNA levels of CGI-105 and C/EBPα genes were determined in the loin muscle tissues of steers. Correlation between carcass traits and mRNA levels of the genes was estimated by Pearson's correlation coefficient. The mRNA levels of C/EBPα showed strong positive correlation (r = 0.83, p < 0.01) with marbling scores. The results of the present study indicate that the manipulation of the expression of the C/EBPα gene may contribute to the development of a method for enhancing intramuscular fat deposition in beef.     

Water dynamics and retrogradation of ultrahigh pressurized wheat starch

The water dynamics and retrogradation kinetics behavior of gelatinized wheat starch by either ultrahigh pressure (UHP) processing or heat are investigated. Wheat starch completely gelatinized in the condition of 90, 000 psi at 25 degrees C for 30 min (pressurized gel) or 100 degrees C for 30 min (heated gel). The physical properties of the wheat starches were characterized in terms of proton relaxation times (T2 times) measured using time-domain nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and evaluated using commercially available continuous distribution modeling software. Different T2 distributions in both micro- and millisecond ranges between pressurized and heated wheat starch gels suggest distinctively different water dynamics between pressurized and heated wheat starch gels. Smaller water self-diffusion coefficients were observed for pressurized wheat starch gels and are indicative of more restricted translational proton mobility than is observed with heated wheat starch gels. The physical characteristics associated with changes taking place during retrogradation were evaluated using melting curves obtained with differential scanning calorimetry. Less retrogradation was observed in pressurized wheat starch, and it may be related to a smaller quantity of freezable water in pressurized wheat starch. Starches comprise a major constituent of many foods proposed for commercial potential using UHP, and the present results furnish insight into the effect of UHP on starch gelatinization and the mechanism of retrogradation during storage.     

Effects of glycerol and moisture gradient on thermomechanical properties of white bread

The thermomechanical properties of breadcrumb were investigated using dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The main transition (T(1), near 0 degrees C) shifted to lower temperature with added glycerol due to freezing point depression. The low-temperature transition (T(3), approximately -50 degrees C), found only in high-glycerol (8.8%) bread, suggested that of excess or phase-separated glycerol. The high-temperature transition (T(2), 60-85 degrees C) appeared only in aged breadcrumbs; its temperature range was correlated well with the amylopectin melting transition (DSC) but its tan delta amplitude did not correlate well with the amylopectin melting enthalpy (r(2) = 0.72). On the other hand, the change of E' ' (viscous behavior) suggested that T(2) might be related to the change in the amorphous region. Domain-to-domain (amorphous) and crumb-to-crust moisture migrations are two critical phenomenological changes associated with aging and could lead to significant local dehydration of some amorphous regions contributing to mechanical firming during storage.     

Characteristics of French Bread Baked from Wheat Flours of Reduced Starch Amylose Content

Wheat genotypes of wild type, partial waxy, and waxy starch were used to determine the influence of starch amylose content on French bread making quality of wheat flour. Starch amylose content and protein content of flours were 25.0–25.4% and 14.3–16.9% for wild type; 21.2 and 14.9% for single null partial waxy; 15.4–17.1% and 13.2–17.6% for double null partial waxy; and 1.8 and 19.3% for waxy starch, respectively. Wheat flours of double null partial waxy starch produced smaller or comparable loaf volume of bread than wheat flours of wild type and single null partial waxy starch. Waxy wheat flour, despite its high protein content, generally produced smaller volume of bread with highly porous, glutinous, and weak crumb than wheat flours of wild type and partial waxy starch. French bread baked from a flour of double null partial waxy starch using the sponge-and-dough method maintained greater crumb moisture content for 24 hr and softer crumb texture for 48 hr of storage compared with bread baked from a flour of wild type starch. In French bread baked using the straight-dough method, double null partial waxy wheat flours with protein content >14.3% exhibited comparable or greater moisture content of bread crumb during 48 hr of storage than wheat flours of wild type starch. While the crumb firmness of bread stored for 48 hr was >11.4 N in wheat flours of wild type starch, it was <10.6 N in single or double null partial waxy flours. Wheat flours of reduced starch amylose content could be desirable for production of French bread with better retained crumb moisture and softness during storage.     

Cooking,Roasting, and Fermentation of Chickpeas,Lentils, Peas,and Soybeans for Fortification of Leavened Bread

The effects of cooking, roasting, and fermentation on the composition and protein properties of grain legumes and the characteristics of dough and bread incorporated with legume flours were determined to identify an appropriate pretreatment. Oligosaccharide content of legumes was reduced by 76.2–96.9% by fermentation, 44.0–64.0% by roasting, and 28.4–70.1% by cooking. Cooking and roasting decreased protein solubility but improved in vitro protein digestibility. Mixograph absorption of wheat and legume flour blends increased from 50–52% for raw legumes to 68–76, 62–64, and 74–80% for cooked, roasted, and fermented ones, respectively. Bread dough with cooked or roasted legume flour was less sticky than that with raw or fermented legume flour. Loaf volume of bread baked from wheat and raw or roasted legume flour blends with or without gluten addition was consistently highest for chickpeas, less for peas and lentils, and lowest for soybeans. Roasted legume flour exhibited more appealing aroma and greater loaf volume of bread than cooked legume flour, and it appears to be the most appropriate preprocessing method for incorporation into bread.     

Poly(ethylene 2,6-naphthalate)/MWNT nanocomposites prepared by in situ polymerization: Rheological and mechanical properties

Poly(ethylene 2,6-naphthalate)/multi-walled carbon nanotube (PEN/MWNT) nanocomposites are prepared by in situ condensation polymerization in the presence of various acid-treated MWNT (a-MWNT) contents and their morphology, rheological and mechanical properties are investigated as a function of the a-MWNT content. SEM image of a plasma-etched nanocomposite exhibits that a-MWNTs are dispersed well in the PEN matrix by forming an interconnected network structure. Accordingly, rheological properties such as complex viscosities and shear moduli of PEN/a-MWNT nanocomposites at the terminal region of low frequency are much higher than those of pure PEN. Glass transition temperatures of nanocomposites also increase with the increment of the a-MWNT content, which stems from the reduced chain mobility due to the specific interaction between a-MWNTs and PEN matrix. Dynamic and tensile mechanical properties of nanocomposites are also higher than those of pure PEN and they increase with the increment of the a-MWNT content. The highly improved mechanical properties of PEN/a-MWNT nanocomposites are explained to originate from the interconnected network structure of a-MWNTs in PEN matrix as well as the strong interfacial adhesion between a-MWNTs and PEN matrix.     

Microstructure of hard and soft kernels of barley

Kernel hardness, an important quality trait of cereal grains, is known to influence pearling properties and malting quality of barley. To understand the endosperm micro-structural features of kernels and their relationship to kernel hardness, endosperms of three hard and three soft hulled spring barley lines based on single kernel characterization system hardness index were observed under light (LM) and scanning electron (SEM) microscopy. Under LM, endosperm cell wall of the three hard kernel lines was significantly thicker than that of the three soft kernel lines. Hard and soft lines showed differences in the degree of starch-protein association and continuity of protein matrix under the SEM. Hard kernel lines with a continuous protein matrix exhibited greater starch-protein adhesion than the soft kernel lines, suggesting that starch-protein binding may be one of the factors influencing barley kernel hardness. SEM of flour particles of soft kernel lines showed numerous well defined individual A and B-type starch granules, while, flour of hard kernel lines mostly showed small flour aggregates with few individual starch granules.