Oat β-glucans: An evaluation of eastern Canadian cultivars and unregistered lines

Abstract

The (1-3), (1-4)-β-D-glucan (β-glucan) content of a number of domestic Canadian oat cultivars and selected unregistered lines was determined to establish the range of β-glucan content in eastern Canadian oat varieties. Seed samples were taken from oats grown at five locations over 3 years in an attempt to assess the effect of environment on variation in β-glucan content. Analysis of variance indicated that the greater source of variation in β-glucan content was due to genetic rather than environmental factors. The highest β-glucan cultivar (Marion) was about 30% higher than the lowest cultivars (OA516-2 and Donald). Differences in β-glucan content among the intermediate cultivars were generally smaller, and in some cases not significant, although the rank order of the cultivars among environments was consistent. A low, but significant, negative association between β-glucan content and precipitation, and a low, but significant, positive association between β-glucan content and temperature was found, but these were not dominant factors influencing β-glucan levels in oats. There was no consistent association between β-glucan content and protein, oil, thousand kernel weight or grain yield (kg/hectare). Key words: Oat, Avena sativa, β-glucan, variation