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Grain and Pulses: Composition, Characteristics, Application and Health Promising Prospects
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Grain and Pulses: Composition, Characteristics, Application and Health Promising Prospects

A special issue of Foods (ISSN 2304-8158). This special issue belongs to the section "Grain".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 January 2023) | Viewed by 37874

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Zhongquan Sui

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Food Science & Technology, School of Agriculture and Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China
Interests: starch modification; structure-functional property of polysaccharides
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Xiangli Kong

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Institute of Nuclear Agricultural Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China
Interests: cereal science; carbohydrate chemistry, functionalities and modifications; starch transitions in industry; structural, thermal and rheological properties of biopolymers

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Chronic diseases refer to conditions that patients suffer from for at least one year and which require continuous medical attention or limit activities of daily living, such as heart disease, cancer, diabetes, metabolic syndrome, etc. Chronic diseases are the leading causes of death and disability worldwide. It has been proven that the risk of chronic diseases could be reduced through the consumption of whole grains and pulses. Whole grains and pulses contain abundant nutrients and bioactive compounds that produce health promising prospects, such as carbohydrates, proteins, lipids, vitamins and minerals, phytochemicals, etc. These food groups can also provide individual or synergistic effects on health prospects. Recently, the utilization of grain and pulses has attracted the interest of the food industry due to their health benefits. The current research topic will overview recent and novel works on various aspects of composition, characteristics, application, and health promising prospects of whole grains and pulses. Accordingly, we call for original research papers or reviews on the topic of whole grains and pulses for this Special Issue.

Prof. Dr. Zhongquan Sui
Dr. Xiangli Kong
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Foods is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • grain
  • pulses
  • composition
  • characteristics
  • application
  • health benefits
  • nutrition
  • properties

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Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

16 pages, 781 KiB  
Article
Phenolic Profiles and Bioactivities of Ten Original Lineage Beans in Thailand
by Chaowanee Chupeerach, Piya Temviriyanukul, Sirinapa Thangsiri, Woorawee Inthachat, Yuraporn Sahasakul, Amornrat Aursalung, Pitthaya Wongchang, Parichart Sangkasa-ad, Aphinya Wongpia, Auytin Polpanit, Onanong Nuchuchua and Uthaiwan Suttisansanee
Foods 2022, 11(23), 3905; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods11233905 - 3 Dec 2022
Cited by 12 | Viewed by 2079
Abstract
Legumes and pulses are important food components with various phytochemicals and health benefits. However, the health-related bioactivities of some underutilized species remain uninvestigated. To breed a new bean lineage with particular health-related properties, this study investigated phenolics (specifically, isoflavones) and the in vitro [...] Read more.
Legumes and pulses are important food components with various phytochemicals and health benefits. However, the health-related bioactivities of some underutilized species remain uninvestigated. To breed a new bean lineage with particular health-related properties, this study investigated phenolics (specifically, isoflavones) and the in vitro inhibitory activities of the enzyme relevant to some non-communicable diseases in underutilized cultivars of Phaseolus lunatus (lima beans), compared to the commonly consumed P. vulgaris (red kidney bean) and beans in the Glycine and Vigna genera. The results indicated that soybeans in the Glycine genus contained the highest isoflavone contents, especially glycitein (1825–2633 mg/100 g bean) and daidzein (1153–6471 mg/100 g bean), leading to potentially higher enzyme inhibitory activities (25–26% inhibition against α-amylase, 54–60% inhibition against α-glucosidase, 42–46% inhibition against dipeptidyl peptidase IV, 12–19% inhibition against acetylcholinesterase and 20–23% inhibition against butyrylcholinesterase) than those from other genera. Interestingly, lima beans with low isoflavone content (up to 2 mg/100 g bean) still possessed high inhibitory activities against lipase (12–21% inhibition) and β-secretase (50–58% inhibition), suggesting that bioactive compounds other than the isoflavones might be responsible for these activities. Isoflavone contents and enzyme inhibitory activities in Vigna beans were diverse, depending on the particular cultivars. The information gained from this study can be used for further investigation of bioactive components and in-depth health properties, as well as for future breeding of a new lineage of bean with specific health potentials. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Grain and Pulses: Composition, Characteristics, Application and Health Promising Prospects)
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25 pages, 2836 KiB  
Article
Sprouting and Hydrolysis as Biotechnological Tools for Development of Nutraceutical Ingredients from Oat Grain and Hull
by Iván Jesús Jiménez-Pulido, Daniel Rico, Cristina Martinez-Villaluenga, Jara Pérez-Jiménez, Daniel De Luis and Ana Belén Martín-Diana
Foods 2022, 11(18), 2769; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods11182769 - 8 Sep 2022
Cited by 11 | Viewed by 3021
Abstract
Oat consumption has increased during the last decade because of the health benefits associated with its soluble dietary fiber (β-glucan), functional proteins, lipids, and the presence of specific phytochemicals, such as avenanthramides. Oat is consumed mainly as whole grain, and the hull (seed [...] Read more.
Oat consumption has increased during the last decade because of the health benefits associated with its soluble dietary fiber (β-glucan), functional proteins, lipids, and the presence of specific phytochemicals, such as avenanthramides. Oat is consumed mainly as whole grain, and the hull (seed coat), comprising 25–35% of the entire grain, is removed, generating a large amount of waste/by-product from the milling industry. The objective of this study was to evaluate the use of biotechnological strategies, such as sprouting for oat grain (OG) and hydrolysis for oat hull (OH), to enhance antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties and lower the glycemic index (GI). Sprouting produced significant (p ≤ 0.05) increases in free (32.10 to 76.62 mg GAE (100 g)−1) and bound phenols (60.45 to 124.36 mg GAE (100 g)−1), increasing significantly (p ≤ 0.05) the avenanthramide (2c, 2p and 2f) soluble phenolic alkaloid content and anti-inflammatory properties of OG. On the other hand, the hydrolysis of OH using Viscoferm (EH2-OH) and Ultraflo XL (EH21-OH) increased by 4.5 and 5-fold the release of bound phenols, respectively; meanwhile, the use of Viscoferm increased the 4.55-fold soluble β-glucan content in OH, reaching values close to those of OG (4.04 vs. 4.46 g (100 g)−1). The study shows the potential of both strategies to enhance the nutritional and bioactive properties of OG and OH and describes these processes as feasible for the industry to obtain an ingredient with high antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities. Single or combined biotechnological tools can be used on oat grains and hulls to provide nutraceutical ingredients. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Grain and Pulses: Composition, Characteristics, Application and Health Promising Prospects)
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18 pages, 913 KiB  
Article
Effect of Flaking and Precooking Procedures on Antioxidant Potential of Selected Ancient Cereal and Legume Flours
by Marco Consumi, Gabriella Tamasi, Claudia Bonechi, Marco Andreassi, Gemma Leone, Agnese Magnani and Claudio Rossi
Foods 2022, 11(11), 1592; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods11111592 - 28 May 2022
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2168
Abstract
Consumption of cereals (and particularly ancient cereals) is considered the base of a healthy diet, and all current dietary guidelines have cereals at the bottom of the nutrition pyramid. Together with cereals, legumes are an excellent source of nutrients and nutraceuticals. The effects [...] Read more.
Consumption of cereals (and particularly ancient cereals) is considered the base of a healthy diet, and all current dietary guidelines have cereals at the bottom of the nutrition pyramid. Together with cereals, legumes are an excellent source of nutrients and nutraceuticals. The effects of agroindustrial pretreatments (flaking and precooking processes) on the antioxidant potential of flours from ancient cereals and legumes were studied. The extraction of free hydrophilic phenolic compounds was carried out in a hydroalcoholic solvent mixture via an ultrasound-assisted process. Furthermore, the solid residue was successively hydrolyzed by an alkaline solution to extract the bound phenolic fraction. Both free and bound extracted fractions were then quantitatively characterized for total polyphenolic and flavonoid contents, and the antioxidant potential was determined by carrying out the ABTS and DPPH radical scavenging assays, expressing the results (in both cases) as the Trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity (TEAC/ABTS and TEAC/DPPH, respectively). The samples were also extracted in organic apolar solvents (acetone or water-saturated iso-butanol) to quantitatively characterize lipophilic antioxidant compounds and pigments. A discussion on the comparison of these analytical parameters of flours obtained from raw, flaked, and precooked cereals and legumes is reported revealing that (i) phenolic compounds are mainly present in the post-hydrolysis extract (bound fraction), (ii) the precooking process significantly reduced the concentration of antioxidants, (iii) the flaking process slightly increased the phenolic content, (iv) legumes were less influenced by pretreatments, suggesting the possibility of using legumes to enrich cereal foods. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Grain and Pulses: Composition, Characteristics, Application and Health Promising Prospects)
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17 pages, 3711 KiB  
Article
Interrelating Grain Hardness Index of Wheat with Physicochemical and Structural Properties of Starch Extracted Therefrom
by Derang Ni, Fan Yang, Lin Lin, Chongde Sun, Xingqian Ye, Li Wang and Xiangli Kong
Foods 2022, 11(8), 1087; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods11081087 - 9 Apr 2022
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 19930
Abstract
To investigate the physicochemical, structural, and rheological characteristics of starch from wheat cultivars varying in grain hardness index employed in making jiuqu and to interrelate grain hardness index with physicochemical and structural properties of starch. Starch extracted therefrom was investigated for structural and [...] Read more.
To investigate the physicochemical, structural, and rheological characteristics of starch from wheat cultivars varying in grain hardness index employed in making jiuqu and to interrelate grain hardness index with physicochemical and structural properties of starch. Starch extracted therefrom was investigated for structural and physicochemical properties. Starch granules showed relatively wide granule size distribution; large size granules showed lenticular shapes while medium and small size granules exhibited spherical or irregular shapes. Starch from wheat with a lower grain hardness index exhibited a relatively higher degree of crystallinity. Chain-length profiles of amylopectin showed distinct differences; among the fractions of fa, fb1, fb2, and fb3 representing the weight-based chain-length proportions in amylopectin, the fa fractions ranged from 19.7% to 21.6%, the fb1 fractions ranged from 44.4% to 45.6%, the fb2 fractions ranged from 16.2% to 17.0%, and the fb3 fractions ranged from 16.1% to 18.8%, respectively. To, Tp, Tc, and ∆H of starch ranged from 57.8 to 59.7 °C, 61.9 to 64.2 °C, 67.4 to 69.8 °C, and 11.9 to 12.7 J/g, respectively. Peak viscosity, hot pasting viscosity, cool pasting viscosity, breakdown, and setback of starch ranged from 127 to 221 RVU, 77 to 106 RVU, 217 to 324 RVU, 44 to 116 RVU, and 137 to 218 RVU, respectively. Both G’ and G” increased in the frequency range of 0.628 to 125.6 rad/s; the wheat starch gels were more solid-like during the whole range of frequency sweep. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Grain and Pulses: Composition, Characteristics, Application and Health Promising Prospects)
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11 pages, 4595 KiB  
Article
Chemical Characterization and In Vitro Anti-Cancer Activities of a Hot Water Soluble Polysaccharide from Hulless Barley Grass
by Yijuan Xu, Chuangchuang Zhang, Meng Qi, Wuyang Huang, Zhongquan Sui and Harold Corke
Foods 2022, 11(5), 677; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods11050677 - 25 Feb 2022
Cited by 18 | Viewed by 9081
Abstract
Hulless barley grass may confer many health benefits attributed to its bioactive functional components, such as polysaccharides. Here, a hot water soluble polysaccharide was extracted from hulless barley grass, and its chemical characterization and in vitro anti-cancer activities were investigated. The yield of [...] Read more.
Hulless barley grass may confer many health benefits attributed to its bioactive functional components, such as polysaccharides. Here, a hot water soluble polysaccharide was extracted from hulless barley grass, and its chemical characterization and in vitro anti-cancer activities were investigated. The yield of hulless barley grass polysaccharide (HBGP) was 2.3%, and the purity reached 99.1% with a polydispersity index (PDI) of 1.11 after purification by a diethylaminoethyl cellulose (DE-32) column and an S-400 high resolution (HR) column. The molecular weight and number-average molecular weight of HBGP were 3.3 × 104 and 2.9 × 104 Da, respectively. The monosaccharide composition of HBGP included 35.1% galactose, 25.6% arabinose, 5.5% glucose, and 5.3% xylose. Based on infrared spectrum analysis, HBGP possessed pyranose and galactose residues. In addition, this water-soluble polysaccharide showed significant cell proliferation inhibitory effects against cancer cell lines HT29, Caco-2, 4T1, and CT26.WT in a dose-dependent manner, especially for HT29 (the half-inhibitory concentration IC50 value = 2.72 mg/mL). The results provide a basis for the development and utilization of hulless barley grass in functional foods to aid in preventing cancer. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Grain and Pulses: Composition, Characteristics, Application and Health Promising Prospects)
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