Abstract
The quality of wheat for baking is critically dependent on the level of α-amylase (1,4-α-D-glucan glucanohydrolase, EC 3.2.1.1), which can be present as “late maturity α-amylase” (LMA), or due to pre-harvest sprouting due to high rainfall and humidity at the time of harvesting. The most commonly used method to measure α-amylase in wheat grain is the Hagberg Falling Number method, but values are also influenced by rheological properties of starch in the grain. In this study we describe a simple, rapid, automated method (Amylase SD) for measurement of α-amylase in pre-harvest sprouted (sprout damaged) wheat grain. The method (Amylase SD) measures the release of p-nitrophenol from 4,6-O-ethylidene-α-4-nitrophenyl-maltoheptaoside by α-amylase in the presence of α-glucosidase. The absorbance of p-nitrophenolate measured at 405 nm in a ChemWell®-T auto-analyser is directly related to the level of α-amylase activity present in the milled wheat grain extract. The Amylase SD method generated <6%CV and correlation to the Falling Number method was represented by an inflection point at ∼160 s. The precision, sensitivity and speed of this method provides an ideal alternative to the Falling Number method for measurement of α-amylase (sprout damage) in wheat grain in wheat breeding programmes or at grain receival points.
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