Abstract
It has been suggested that intensive breeding has led to decreased contents of health-promoting components in modern wheats. We therefore compared the contents and compositions of the major dietary fibre components, arabinoxylan and β-glucan, in semolina and wholemeal flour of old and modern Italian durum wheats. No differences in total arabinoxylan content were observed but the modern varieties had higher proportions of soluble arabinoxylan in wholemeals and of β-glucan in semolina. The study therefore provides no evidence that intensive breeding has had negative effects on the contents of dietary fibre components in durum wheat. However, comparison of material grown over two years indicated that the content and composition of arabinoxylan and β-glucan were more stable in the older than in the modern genotypes. The identification of modern cultivars with high viscosity associated with a high content of β-glucan suggests that they are good sources of fibre for human health.
Highlights
Wheat is the most widely cultivated crop in the world and the dominant staple crop in temperate countries, where it provides between 20% and 50% of the total intake of calories
Groups of seven older and eight modern Italian durum wheat genotypes were grown in replicated randomised field trials for two seasons
There was no significant difference between the mean Thousand kernel weight (TKW) of the old and modern groups of genotypes in 2013, but the modern genotypes had a significantly lower mean TWK than the old genotypes in 2014
Summary
Wheat is the most widely cultivated crop in the world and the dominant staple crop in temperate countries, where it provides between 20% and 50% of the total intake of calories. The global success of wheat results from its wide adaptation to local environments and good processing properties, and from the high yields resulting from intensive breeding carried out over the past century. Such breeding programmes for durum wheat started at the beginning of the 20 th century and were primarily focused on increased grain yield, shorter stature and early maturation to suit Mediterranean conditions where drought and high temperature can occur during ripening (De Vita et al, 2007), and improved protein quality for pasta making (Raciti, Doust, Lombardo, Boggini, & Pecetti, 2003). It has been suggested that the emphasis of intensive breeding on yield and grain quality has resulted in the neglect of components which may contribute to health (such as secondary products which confer resistance to herbivores) (Morris & Sands, 2006)
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
