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Estimation of Mixed Linkage [β‐Glucan Concentration in Oat and Barley from Viscosity of Whole Grain Flour Slurry
Author(s) -
Doehlert Douglas C.,
Zhang Decai,
McMullen Michael S.,
Moore Wayne R.
Publication year - 1997
Publication title -
crop science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.76
H-Index - 147
eISSN - 1435-0653
pISSN - 0011-183X
DOI - 10.2135/cropsci1997.0011183x003700010041x
Subject(s) - avena , barley flour , slurry , glucan , hordeum vulgare , food science , viscosity , biology , wheat flour , viscometer , whole grains , agronomy , beta glucan , poaceae , materials science , biochemistry , composite material
The presence of [β‐glucan from oat ( Avena sativa L.) or barley ( Hordeum vulgare L.) products in the human diet can lower serum cholesterol. The selection of new oat or barley cuitivars with higher β‐glucan concentration in the grain is usually limited by the efficiency of the analytical procedure required to measure this component. The utility of flour slurry viscosity as an indirect means of estimating flour β‐glucan concentration was investigated. Water at 25°C was added to enzyme‐inactivated whole‐grain oat flour to form a 23% dry matter mixture, and stirred to form a uniform slurry. Viscosity, as measured with a rotational spindle‐type viscometer, increased hyperbolically with time. Viscosity measured 3 h after water addition was exponentially dependent on flour content and was linearly correlated with β‐glucan concentration in the flour. The procedure was useful as a screening method for the estimation of β‐glucan concentration in preliminary breeding lines of oat and barley. The procedure is effective with enzyme‐inactivated (steam‐treated) whole or dehulled grain, but the presence of endo‐β‐glucanases in hulls of oats and barley prevent the application of this procedure with flours of raw whole oats and barleys.