Journal of Cereal Science最新文献

Nitrogen (N) topdressing often leads to a decline in cooking and eating quality due to alterations in grain chemical composition. Investigation into the response of N compounds in grains, such as protein-bound amino acids (PAA), free amino acids (FAA), and other residue N compounds (N_residue), would be beneficial for understanding the impact of N on rice quality. The present study selected five japonica rice cultivars and conducted a two-year field experiment employing two N fertilization treatments: the CK treatment, where all N fertilizer was applied as basal fertilizer, and the topdressing treatment, where 50% of the total N was applied as topdressing at the panicle initiation stage. Averaging across years and cultivars, N topdressing resulted in a 16.3% increase in PAA and an 8.65% decrease in FAA, with no significant impact on N_residue. N topdressing resulted in a decrease in the proportion of essential amino acids found in prolamins, as well as a reduction in the proportion of amino acids belonging to the aspartate family and arginine. Significant genotypic variations were observed in the response of nitrogen components to topdressing. Furthermore, elite cultivars with premium quality exhibited greater stability in amylose content compared to protein content.

Organic farming contributes to sustain healthy ecosystems, but challenges such as lower crop yields and supply of the nitrogen needs of crops remain. Wheat is the most important organic arable crop in Europe and grain protein content is the main quality trait also for grading organic wheat despite that high baking quality can be also realized at lower protein contents. Hence, breeding of organic wheat varieties that realize a stable high grain protein content even at lower nitrogen availability is of utmost importance to guarantee income of organic wheat growers. A major QTL for high grain protein content was identified in wild emmer and transferred into bread wheat. We tested six different wheat genetic backgrounds varying for the presence/absence of the functional Gpc-B1 allele in multi-location trials in Central Europe for their performance under organic growing. The increase in grain protein content caused by the functional Gpc-B1 allele was present in almost all genetic backgrounds, however, was not consistent across all tested quality traits. None the less, the functional Gpc-B1 allele may play a major role to increase the stability of organic wheat to reach minimum requirements by traders and processors with respect to grain protein content.

Bran layer moderate removal during rice milling is a crucial process for reducing rice broken rate and nutrient loss. The bran layer structural-cracking behavior is analyzed using a self-developed in-situ observation tensile tester with high-speed image acquisition. The rice bran tissue microstructure, chemical composition, cracking morphology are in-depth investigated. The results show that rice bran pericarp cells are of reticulate network, cell shape with rectangular or elliptical.significant differences in cell distribution and density across rice varieties, with Japonica rice (NJ5055) with a denser and more uniform structure, exhibiting higher ductility and tensile strength. The rice bran exhibited linear elastic rheological behavior. The bran tensile property is different under tensing directions, the tensile strength shows longitudinal (Y) > radial (X). Cracking along the cell long axis is Y direction, showing orderly line cracking path. Cracking along cell short axis is X direction, showing zigzag cracking path. Pericarp cells geometrical structure determines the mechanical strength and cracking-removal resistance ability of rice bran. The pericarp layer significantly enhances the ductility of the bran layer, allowing it to stretch and deform under stress, thereby improving overall mechanical performance. Rice bran structural-mechanical properties are affected by micro-structure and components.

The microstructure of manufactured foods largely governs palatability qualities such as crunchiness, crispness, mouthfeel and texture. While enriching cereal flour with leguminous flour increases its nutritional value, it should not compromise the palatability of the end products. This study investigated the flour blend properties as well as the physical and microstructural characteristics of durum wheat semolina pasta enriched with 50% chickpea flour obtained from single-stage (Ferkar) and multi-stage (roller) mills. Results of the flour blend analysis indicated the influence of milling on the protein, ash and particle size distribution of pasta. High protein chickpea blend showed minimal impact on the microstructure of the pasta. Also, the textural analysis of the pasta samples showed that the hardness and firmness of pasta made with roller-milled flours, specifically reduction and straight-grade flours, were not statistically significantly different (p < 0.05). However, correlating the texture and total porosity indicated that flour from roller mill reduction rolls resulted in pasta with a firmer texture along with a more compact internal and external microstructure. The findings of this study provide useful insight into the quality attributes of chickpea-enriched wheat semolina pasta as influenced by the mill type and stream blend of the chickpea flour.

To address issues such as clumping, spoon adherence, and the formation of powdery packets in puffed corn flour (PCF), this study incorporated three exogenous proteins—egg white powder (EWP), soybean protein isolate (SPI), and whey protein isolate (WPI)—and applied ultrasonication. This treatment improved PCF's physicochemical properties and microstructure. Ultrasonication increased the starch resistance and reduced the short-range ordering of the samples, as evidenced by in vitro digestion results, X-ray diffraction (XRD), and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) data. Unexpectedly, the sonicated samples exhibited an A + V crystal structure with diffraction peaks near 13°,17°, and 19.9°. Furthermore, by using ultrasonication, the addition of EWP, SPI, and WPI raised the samples' water solubility index by 2.97%, 1.05%, and 9.87%, respectively; however, light transmittance decreased by 34.91%, 42.60%, and 25.33%. The agglomerate rate was reduced to zero; ultrasonic treatment also resulted in microparticles that were smaller and exhibited more holes and gaps on their surfaces. Additionally, the samples' breakdown and setback values increased, while their stability and anti-aging qualities decreased. These findings suggest that ultrasound combined with protein treatment significantly enhances the flushing properties of puffed cereal flours and supports their expanded use in the food industry.

The effects of speed (250–450 rpm) and time (10–50 min) on milling energy (E), particle size distribution (PSD), crystallinity degree (CD), damaged starch (DS), microstructure, hydration and pasting properties of flours obtained in a planetary ball mill (PBM) were investigated. As increasing milling severity quinoa flours showed polydispersed PSD (peaks at 417, 40 and 2 μm) with a shift towards smaller size and greater dispersion (Span: 3.0–5.2) as well as particles with rounded edges and polished surfaces (SEM images). The relationship E − D50 were satisfactorily predicted by the Walker's equation. The hydration tests as function of temperature and milling conditions revealed a complex flour behavior due to differences in PSD, composition, and DS content. The increasing milling energy caused a decrease in peak viscosity (PV), trough viscosity (TV) and final viscosity (FV) of up to 36%, 29%, and 25%, respectively. Significant correlations between flour attributes were found (DS-CD, r = −0.83, p < 0.01; PV-D50, r = 0.92, p < 0.01; TV-D50, r = 0.94, p < 0.01; FV-D50, r = 0.90, p < 0.01) denoted the increase of starch degradation as milling severity rises. These results can be used to improve the manufacture and the selection criteria of quinoa flour with specific functional attributes.

The investigation focused on the batter properties, baking performance, and retrogradation behavior of gluten-free sponge cakes after partial (15%, 30%, and 45%) substitution of glutinous rice flour with exogenous protein, including whey protein isolates (WPI), egg white protein (EWP), and soy protein isolate (SPI). The viscoelastic properties and apparent viscosity of batter positively correlated with substitution levels, with SPI superior to WPI and EWP. WPI could produce batter with smaller and more evenly distributed cells, contributing to an enhanced specific volume of the cake due to its stabilizing effect of gas cells to form viscoelastic films. The gelatinization of starch granules proved to be constrained by the incorporation of WPI and SPI, as evidenced by elevated gelatinization temperature and reduced enthalpy change values. The restriction could be attributed to the strengthened hydrogen bonding between the starch and protein, which subsequently alleviated the retrogradation and water redistribution of cake during storage. An unpleasant eggy or beany flavor of cake was generated at 45% substitutions of EWP and SPI. In comparison, 30% WPI contributed to an appealing aroma and mouthfeel, making it a nutritional supplement to enhance its protein content while maintaining its fine sensory attributes of gluten-free sponge cake.

To address certain issues in noodle processing, a self-designed vibrating plate ultrasound equipment was implemented in dough processing. This study investigated the effects of ultrasound on the disulfide bond, secondary structures, and microstructures of noodles, as well as their qualities including texture, tensile strength, and cooking characteristics. The objective was to uncover the underlying mechanisms by which ultrasound assistance enhances dough processing. The findings indicated that ultrasonic treatment enhanced noodle quality, especially under the action of medium-intensity ultrasound treatment (MUS, 330 W; 30 s). After undergoing MUS, the noodles exhibited a notable enhancement in tensile force and stretching distance by 21.2% and 49.3% compared with the control group. MUS treatment facilitated the transformation of loosely bound water to tightly bound water during dough processing. LUS, MUS, HUS treatment led to a notable increase in β-turn and β-sheet contents. Moreover, the microstructure of noodles exhibited enhanced stability and orderliness, characterized by reduced exposed starch particles and smaller pore size. Noodles treated with MUS received the highest sensory scores. Overall, the vibrating plate ultrasonic-assisted dough processing technology demonstrated improvement in the quality of noodles, offering an innovative strategy for enhancing flour product production.

The use of multiple allelism at the GLI loci encoding the grain storage proteins, gliadins, makes it possible, theoretically, to distinguish between half a billion of common wheat homozygous genotypes differing among them at least at one GLI locus. No one case of the identity of gliadin genotype was observed among unrelated cultivars in our study of about 1000 registered world-wide cultivars (seed-by-seed analysis). Three well-distinguished types of intra-varietal non-uniformity were observed in the material studied: authentic biotypes (morphologically identical lines appearing as a result of segregation of heterozygous genotype produced by breeder), single foreign seeds (admixtures), and different types of mutant seeds carrying mutations at the GLI loci. Another finding made using gliadin alleles for wheat genotype identification is that wheat polymorphism is not proportionally distributed around the world. Groups of cultivars bred in different countries and even in regions of the same country might differ strongly in the frequency of specific alleles at the GLI loci. The possibility of a role of some alleles at the GLI loci in determining dough quality is discussed.