Total phenolic, flavonoid content, and antioxidant activity of flour, noodles, and steamed bread made from different colored wheat grains by three milling methods

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of wheat variety, food processing, and milling method on antioxidant properties. Black wheat variety Heibaoshi 1 had the highest total phenolic content(659.8 μg gallic acid equivalents g-1), total flavonoid content(319.3 μg rutin equivalents g-1), and antioxidant activity, whereas light purple wheat variety Shandongzimai 1 had the lowest total flavonoid content(236.2 μg rutin equivalents g-1) and antioxidant activity. Whole wheat flour and partially debranned grain flour had significantly higher total phenolic contents, total flavonoid contents, and antioxidant activity than refined flour(P < 0.05). Compared with flour, total phenolic contents, total flavonoid contents and antioxidant activity decreased in noodles and steamed bread, whereas noodles had slightly higher total phenolic and flavonoid content than steamed bread. Antioxidant activities(by ferric reducing ability of plasma assay) of steamed bread made from whole wheat flour, partially debranned grain flour, and refined flour were 23.5%, 21.1%, and 31.6% lower, respectively, than the corresponding values of flour. These results suggested that black whole wheat flour and partially debranned grain flour are beneficial to human health.

Diurnal Changes in the Transcription Profiles of Genes Encoding Starch Synthesis-related Enzymes in Wheat Grains under Field Conditions

[Objective] During the filling stage of plant growth and development, storage starch is diurnally synthesized and accumulated in the grains from cereal crops, but the underlying molecular mechanism is unclear. [Method] In this study, grains from the bread wheat cultivar Zhoumai 18 grown in fields were harvested at 15 d after anthesis, and quantitative real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction(qPCR) was used to measure the transcriptional levels of 26 genes encoding starch synthesis-related enzymes at 2 h intervals throughout a diurnal cycle. [Result] Our findings indicated that storage starch was persistently synthesized in wheat grains throughout a 24 h period. The diurnal patterns of the transcriptional levels of 26 genes in wheat grains were classified into two groups. The 13 genes in Group 1 were temporally and highly expressed in wheat grains,and their encoded proteins could play crucial roles in starch synthesis. The other 13 genes in Group 2 were characterized by low or no transcription in wheat grains throughout a diurnal cycle, suggesting their function in the synthesis or degradation of transitory starches in wheat grains. [Conclusion] These results provide information on the molecular mechanism of storage starch synthesis in higher plants.