Tetraploid Wheats: Valuable Source of Phytosterols and Phytostanols

Othmane Merah,Zephirin Mouloungui

doi:10.3390/agronomy9040201

Abstract

Phytosterols are known as healthy compounds obtained mainly from oilseed crops. Cereals were also studied for their sterols content. Few insights have been devoted to other tetraploid species than emmer and durum wheats. This work examined phytosterol and phytostanol content in seed of six tetraploid wheat species cultivated during two successive years under rainfed organic conditions in Auch (near Toulouse, France). Sterols (free and esterified sterols) were measured by gas-chromatography-flame ionisation detector. Mean value of sterols + stanols content was 99.5 mg 100 g−1 DW. The main sterol was β-sitosterol. Results showed a year effect on sterol content, whatever the wheat species. This could be explained by the differences in climatic conditions prevailing during plant cycle and grain filling. A large variability for sterols content was found between species and within each species. Emmer wheat revealed the lowest values for all sterols and stanols. Higher values of sterols were obtained in durum wheat. This work is the first report studying T. carthlicum, T. polonicum, T. turgidum, T. timopheevi. These species exhibited intermediate values of sterol contents between emmer and durum wheats. Wheat tetraploid species showed interesting levels of sterols and could serve as a great source of these healthy compounds mainly in Mediterranean region where they are consumed as wholegrain. Variation in climatic conditions could help to manage the level of these secondary metabolites.

Highlights

Among the nutrients contained in cereal grains, phytosterols constitute bioactive secondary metabolites due to beneficial role in the prevention of cardiovascular disease [1,2,3]
The collection was composed by three accessions of Triticum turgidum var. dicoccum, T. turgidum var polonicum, T. timopheevi, T. turgidum var carthlicum, and of T. turgidum var. turgidum and four durum wheat (T. turgidum var. durum) (Table 1)
This is the first report on Triticum turgidum, T. polonicum, T. carthlicum, and T. timopheevi

Summary

Introduction

Among the nutrients contained in cereal grains, phytosterols constitute bioactive secondary metabolites due to beneficial role in the prevention of cardiovascular disease [1,2,3] These minor lipids, which gained great attention in the last few years, present a similar chemical structure with cholesterol and differed by the presence of a methyl or ethyl group in carbon 24 of the basic cholesterol [4,5,6]. They have a key-role in the regulation of membrane fluidity and permeability, are involved in embryogenesis, and are precursors of brassinosteroids [7,8,9]. The interest of use of proton nuclear magnetic resonance

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