Pearl Millet Grain Research Articles

Characterization of Pennisetum Glaucum (Pearl Millet)

Pearl millet grains were characterized in terms of moisture, viscosity, Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) and near infrared (NIR) spectroscopic analysis. The moisture content was determined using Association of Official Analytical Chemists (AOAC) standard method, viscosity of grains was determined via Labman 200 rotational viscometer. In this study, the data was collected for the pearl millet grains and analysed using Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) and Near Infrared Spectroscopy (NIR). The average value of moisture and viscosity was 16.26% and 1769.22 mPaSec, respectively. The fourier transform infrared analysis showed the presence of N-H and O-H compounds from pearl millet. The analysis from near infrared spectra of the pearl millet grains showed the N-H stretching, O-H stretching and C-H stretching first-overtone and combinational bands.

Anti-Hyperlipidemia, Hypoglycemic, and Hepatoprotective Impacts of Pearl Millet (Pennisetum glaucum L.) Grains and Their Ethanol Extract on Rats Fed a High-Fat Diet.

This study tested the anti-hyperlipidemic, hypoglycemic, hepatoprotective, and anti-inflammatory effects of whole pearl millet grain powder (MPG) and its ethanol extract (MPGethaolE) in obese rats fed a high-fat diet. The rats were divided into eight groups based on the treatments they received: control, high fat diet (HFD), HFD + MGE (25 mg/Kg), HFD + MPGethaolE (50 mg/Kg), HFD + MPGethaolE (100 mg/Kg), HFD + MPG (10%), HFD + MPG (20%), and HFD + MPG (30%). The final body weight, visceral, epididymal fat pads, and the liver weight were significantly decreased, in a dose-dependent manner, in HFD fed rats that were co-administered either the MPG powder or MPGethaolE. In the same line, serum levels of triglycerides (TGs), cholesterol (CHOL), and low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-c), as well as fasting glucose, insulin, HOMA-IR, and serum levels of lipopolysaccharides (LPS), interleukine-6 (IL-6), interleukine-10 (IL-10), C-reactive protein (CRP), tumor necrosis factor (TNF-α), and adiponectin were progressively decreased while serum levels of high-density lipoproteins (HDL-c) were significantly increased when increasing the doses of both treatments. In conclusion, both the raw powder and ethanolic extract of MP have a comparative dose-dependent anti-obesity, hypoglycemic, hypolipidemic, anti-inflammatory, and anti-steatotic in HFD-fed rats.

Achieving nutritional security in India through iron and zinc biofortification in pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum (L.) R. Br.).

The health problems caused by iron (Fe) and zinc (Zn) deficiency plague developing and underdeveloped countries. A vegetarian person mainly depends on cereal based diet with low quantity of Fe and Zn. Biofortification is an economical and sustainable approach to challenge the micronutrient malnutrition problem globally. Pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum (L.) R. Br.) is one of the nutri-cereals and mostly grown under hot, dry conditions on infertile soils of low water-holding capacity, where other crops generally fail. It contains anti-nutrient compounds like phytic acid and polyphenols which reduce the mineral bioavailability because of their chelating properties. Biofortification of pearl millet is like a double-edged sword which cuts down the economic burden and simultaneously supplies required nutrition to the poor, offering a great scope for food security as well as nutritional security. With this background, this review focus on biofortification of grain Fe and Zn content in pearl millet. Genetic research on Fe and Zn uptake and accumulation in pearl millet grain is crucial in identifying the 'bottlenecks' in biofortification. The review also reveals the need and strategies for increasing bioavailability of Fe and Zn in humans by increasing promoters and decreasing anti-nutritional factors in pearl millet.

No-Tillage with Residue Retention and Foliar Sulphur Nutrition Enhances Productivity, Mineral Biofortification and Crude Protein in Rainfed Pearl Millet under Typic Haplustepts: Elucidating the Responses Imposed on an Eight-Year Long-Term Experiment.

Yield limitation and widespread sulphur (S) deficiency in pearl-millet-nurturing dryland soils has emerged as a serious threat to crop productivity and quality. Among diverse pathways to tackle moisture and nutrient stress in rainfed ecologies, conservation agriculture (CA) and foliar nutrition have the greatest potential due to their economic and environmentally friendly nature. Therefore, to understand ammonium thiosulphate (ATS)-mediated foliar S nutrition effects on yield, protein content, mineral biofortification, and sulphur economy of rainfed pearl millet under diverse crop establishment systems, a field study was undertaken. The results highlighted that pearl millet grain and protein yield was significantly higher under no-tillage +3 t/ha crop residue mulching (NTCRM) as compared to no-tillage without mulch (NoTill) and conventional tillage (ConvTill), whereas the stover yield under NTCRM and ConvTill remained at par. Likewise, grain and stover yield in foliar S application using ATS 10 mL/L_twice was 19.5% and 13.2% greater over no S application. The sulphur management strategy of foliar-applied ATS 10 mL/L_twice resulted in significant improvement in grain protein content, protein yield, micronutrient fortification, and net returns (₹ 54.6 × 1000) over the control. Overall, ATS-mediated foliar S nutrition can be an alternate pathway to S management in pearl millet for yield enhancement, micronutrient biofortification and grain protein content increase under ConvTill, as well as under the new NTCRM systems.

Silage Crops for Dairy and Beef Cattle II: Sorghum and Other Forage Crops

This publication is a second article on silage crops for dairy and beef cattle that explores crop choices and agronomic aspects of silage production in Florida, from planting until preparing to harvest for sorghum, sorghum x sudan, pearl millet, and cool-season small grain silages. Written by Marcelo Wallau, Joao Vendramini, Adegbola Adesogan, Diwakar Vyas, and Kevin Korus, and published by the UF/IFAS Agronomy Department, February 2022.

Integrated weed management in pearl millet [Pennisetum glaucum (L.) R. Br.

The scarcity of labour in agriculture and change in behaviour, weed management in rain fed pearl millet is very difficult. Further, to improve/ fine tune the existing recommendation of weed management in pearl millet, this experiment was planned. A field experiment was carried out during the rainy (Kharif) seasons of 2012 to 2014 in sandy loam soils at ICAR-All India Coordinated Research Project on Pearl Millet, Research Farm, Agricultural Research Station, Mandor, Jodhpur (Agriculture University, Jodhpur), to evaluate the effect of integrated weed management in rainfed pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum L.) with pre-emergence application of atrazine 0.5 kg/ha + 1 HW at 35 DAS, four levels of post-emergence application of atrazine (0.1, 0.2, 0.3 and 0.4 kg/ ha) along with one hand weeding at 35 DAS, two hand weeding and hoeing (at 20 and 40 DAS). Eight treatment combinations were laid out in randomized block design in four replications. All weed management practices caused significant improvement in grain and dry fodder yield of pearl millet compared to the weedy check (1943 kg/ha and 30.86 q/ha). The best treatment was found weed free and it was followed by post emergence application of Atrazine @ 0.4 kg/ha. In comparison to the weed dry matter recorded at harvest with weedy check (547.1 kg/ha), all weed management practices recorded quite lower dry matter of weeds and were found to be at par in managing weeds compared to the weed free plot. Efficiency of post emergence application of Atrazine @ 0.2,0.3 and 0.4 kg/ha was found more better in controlling weeds than the recommended practice of managing weeds by pre emergence application of Atrazine. Weed control efficiency were also found higher in weed free and it was followed by two hand weeding and post emergence application of Atrazine @ 0.4 kg treatments, respectively.

Zero Tillage, Residue Retention and System-Intensification with Legumes for Enhanced Pearl Millet Productivity and Mineral Biofortification

Pearl millet-based cropping systems with intensive tillage operations prior to sowing have limited sustainable productivity in the low-irrigation conditions of semi-arid farming ecologies, such as those in the north Indian plains. The adoption of improved management practices such as zero tillage with residue retention (ZTR) and diversification with the inclusion of summer pulse crops has the potential to improve cropping system sustainability. Therefore, an experiment was designed to compare two improved management practices, zero tillage (ZT) and ZTR, to conventional tillage (CT), across three pearl millet-based cropping systems: pearl millet–chickpea (PM–CP), PM–CP–mungbean (MB), and PM–CP–forage pearl millet in a two-year experiment. Experimental treatments were compared in terms of pearl millet productivity, mineral biofortification, and greenhouse gas emissions. Results showed a significant increase in pearl millet yield attributes, grain and stover productivity, nutrient uptake, and micronutrient biofortification in the PM–CP–MB cropping system under ZTR relative to other treatment combinations. On-farm evaluation at different locations also showed that the intensification of PM–CP system using summer crops enhanced pearl millet productivity across diverse tillage systems. Overall, zero tillage practices combined with diversified pearl millet-based cropping systems are likely to be management practices, which farmers can use to sustainably maintain or increase cropping system productivity in the various semi-arid areas of the world.

Thermal treatments reduce rancidity and modulate structural and digestive properties of starch in pearl millet flour

Pearl millet is a nutrient dense and gluten free cereal, however it's flour remains underutilized due to the onset of rancidity during its storage. To the best of our knowledge, processing methods, which could significantly reduce the rancidity of the pearl millet flour during storage, are non-existent. In this study, pearl millet grains were subjected to a preliminary hydro-treatment (HT). Subsequently, the hydrated grain-wet flour have undergone individual and combined thermal treatments viz., hydrothermal (HTh) and thermal near infrared rays (thNIR). Effects of these thermal treatments on the biochemical process of hydrolytic and oxidative rancidity were analyzed in stored flour. A significant (p < 0.05) decrease in the enzyme activities of lipase (47.8%), lipoxygenase (84.8%), peroxidase (98.1%) and polyphenol oxidase (100%) in HT-HTh-thNIR treated flour compared to the individual treatments was documented. Upon storage (90 days), decline of 67.84% and 66.4% of free fatty acid and peroxide contents were observed in flour under HT-HTh-thNIR treatment without altering starch and protein digestibility properties. HT-HTh treated flour exhibited the highest (7.6%) rapidly digestible starch, decreased viscosity and increased starch digestibility (67.17%). FTIR analysis of HT-HTh treated flour divulged destabilization of short-range ordered crystalline structure and altered protein structures with decreased in vitro digestibility of protein. Overall, these results demonstrated the effectiveness of combined thermal treatment of HT-HTh-thNIR in reducing rancidity and preserving the functional properties of the stored flour.

Micronutrient Fortification of Pearl Millet [Pennisetum glaucum (L.) R. Br.] Hybrids using Customized Fertilizer Formulation

The studies were undertaken at ICAR-AICRP on Pearl Millet, Research Farm, ARS, Mandor, Jodhpur (Agriculture University, Jodhpur), Rajasthan, India during July to October of both the 2019 and 2020. The experiment was consisted of three fertilizers (Control, Nutrient supply through straight fertilizers and Nutrient supply through customized fertilizer) and seven pearl millet hybrids (‘MPMH 21’, ‘MPMH 17’, ‘RHB 177’, ‘RHB 173’, ‘HHB 67 (Improved)’, ‘HHB 197’ and ‘HHB 272’) in FRBD and replicated thrice. Findings revealed, application of customized fertilizer of the grade 6:6:2:1 (N:P2O5:K2O:Zn) to pearl millet substantially enhanced Zn concentration in the roots, shoots, and leaves at panicle initiation (47.30, 54.31, 52.33 mg kg-1), 50% flowering (40.30, 50.96, 50.10 mg kg-1) and at harvest (45.27, 46.54, 47.29 mg kg-1), respectively, over control. Similarly, Fe concentration in the roots, shoots and leaves were also increased markedly due to the application of customized fertilizer. Substantially higher Zn (56.42 mg kg-1), Fe (39.50 mg kg-1), Mn (15.13 mg kg-1) and Cu (18.31 mg kg-1) concentrations in the pearl millet grain was also fetched by applying customized fertilizer. Moreover, customized fertilizer application statistically enhanced grain (2,010 kg) and straw (3,417 kg) yields over control. Among pearl millet hybrids, ‘HHB 67 Improved’ recorded substantially higher Zn (61.97 mg kg-1), Fe (43.98 mg kg-1) and Mn (15.46 mg kg-1) concentration in grain and Cu (25.09 mg kg-1) concentration in straw. Albeit, ‘HHB 173’ noticed significantly higher Cu (19.60 mg kg-1) concentration in grain. Further, among hybrids, ‘MPMH 17’ out yielded (1,958 kg ha-1) followed by ‘RHB 173’ (1,795 kg ha-1).

IMPROVEMENT OF PEARL MILLET (Pennisetum glaucum (L.) R. BR) PROLAMIN EXTRACTABILITY: CHROMATOGRAPHIC SEPARATION, CHARACTERIZATION AND FUNCTIONAL PROPERTIES

Pearl millet is a gluten free cereal resistant to drought, diseases and pests. The major protein fraction in pearl millet is prolamin the alcohol soluble fraction called pennisetin. Researches on the factors affecting pennisetin extraction and on its functional properties are still very scant. In this paper, the effect of temperature, reducing agents (β-mercaptoethanol, dithiothreitol or sodium metabisulfite) and sodium hydroxide on pennisetin extraction was assessed. Samples were characterized by protein and amino acid (AA) analysis, SDS-Page and reversed phase high-performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC). Pennisetin was extracted with high protein purity (90.1%) from pearl millet grain flour (PMF) using 70% aqueous ethanol containing 1% sodium metabisulfite and 0.2% sodium hydroxide at 60°C. SDS-Page confirmed pennisetin extraction and showed three subunits corresponding to the 27-, 22- and 12 kDa-pennisetins. The percentage of essential amino acids in pennisetin (68.55%) was higher than that in PMF (41.64%). The hydrophobic character of pennisetin was confirmed by the presence of 45.49% of hydrophobic amino acids. Functional properties of pennisetin and PMF were investigated. Compared to PMF, pennisetin exhibited comparable oil and water binding capacities and higher foaming capacity and emulsifying activity index but with lower emulsion stability. Pennisetin functional properties were similar or lower relatively to common used proteins of wheat, sorghum, rice or peanut. Excluding water, oil binding and foam capacities, all the functional properties of pennisetin and PMF were significantly different (p≤0.05).The findings suggest increasing the use of pennisetin and PMF as nutritional and health promoting agent for vegans and celiac patients.

Analysis of the performance, variability and nature of pearl millet productive traits in the rainfed environment of Andhra Pradesh

An effort was made to examine one forty pearl millet hybrids in order to assess genetic variance and investigate the relationship between nine yield contributing traits. The study of variance showed that the crosses had significant genetic variability. An attempt was made to choose the best hybrids for grain yield and adaptation to low rainfall regions in arid Alfisols of Andhra Pradesh. Among the tested cross combinations, ABH-61, ABH-50 and ABH-77 were found to be promising for higher yield potential, emerging as an ideal candidate for rainfed conditions. Grain weight and grain yield showed the highest GCV and PCV estimates, as well as high heritability and genetic advance as a per cent of then mean, implying that these traits were due to high additive gene effects and simple directional selection may improve them. The size of the panicle and the height of the plant had a significant and positive relationship with grain yield. As a result, selecting genotypes with longer panicles and taller plants can aid in increasing pearl millet grain yield. Key words: Pearl millet, variability, heritability, character association, grain yield

Influence of tied-ridge-furrow with inorganic fertilizer on grain yield across semiarid regions of Asia and Africa: A meta-analysis

BackgroundIn semiarid areas, low productivity of crops has been attributed to lack of appropriate soil moisture conservation practices since droughts and soil erosion are rampant in most areas of this region. Consequently, ridge-furrow rainwater harvesting is widely used in these regions across the globe. Despite ridge-furrow being widely practiced, tied-ridge-furrow has not been extensively adopted by small-scale farmers in semi-arid regions. Consequently, the effectiveness of tied-ridge-furrow as a viable method of increasing crop yield has received less attention.MethodologyFor large-scale implementation, a detailed assessment of how ridge furrow, tied–ridge-furrow with fertilizer, tied-ridge-furrow with mulching and tied-ridge-furrow without mulching or fertilizer influence crop yield in different agro-environments under varying climatic conditions is needed. This study used the PRISMA guidelines to determine the impact of tied-ridge-furrow rainwater harvesting technique with mulching or fertilizer on sorghum (Sorghum bicolor) and pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum) grain yields.ResultsSorghum grain yield increased by 17% greater in tied-ridge-furrow without mulching or fertilizer in comparison to flat planting. This may be due to increase in soil organic carbon in the region (9 g kg−1). Grain yield of millet significantly increased by 20–40% in Africa from 18 study observations in tied-ridge-furrow with fertilizer application as compared to tied-ridge-furrow without mulching or fertilizer treatments. This might be due to the significant increase in total nitrogen by 13–42% in the soil at <50 mg kg−1 quantity which had an effect size of 469.14 [65.60, 872.67]. In terms of soil texture, grain yield of millet and sorghum significantly increased in heavy textured soils (clay loam, silt clay, and clay soils) with an effect size of 469.14 [65.60, 872.67] compared to light and medium-textured soils of zero effect sizes. Millet and sorghum grain yields in tied-ridge-furrow with mulching, on the other hand, were not significantly different from those in flat planting. This may be due to the mulching materials used in those tests.ConclusionIn view of yields of sorghum and millet increased significantly by 32% and 17% in tied-ridge-furrow without mulching or fertilizer treatment compared to flat planting and tied-ridge-furrow with fertilizer treatment compared with tied-ridge-furrow without mulching or fertilizer treatment, respectively, this study recommend the use of fertilizers in a tied-ridge-furrow system to increase grain yield in semiarid areas compared to flat planting. Again, the study recommends more research on tied-ridge-furrow systems with other organic mulches and fertilizers in semiarid areas.

Sanitized human urine (Oga) as a fertilizer auto-innovation from women farmers in Niger

Poor soil chemical fertility and climate change restrict pearl millet grain yield in Niger Republic. Apart from the seedball technology, which targets majorly early phosphorus supply to the plants, the recommended practices of mineral fertilization and seed treatments (coating and priming) are barely affordable to the local farmers in particular. In the case of female farmers, who usually have chemically infertile farmlands often located far away from their homestead, low pearl millet grain yield can be exacerbated. In quest for a cheap, affordable, and effective solution, we hypothesized that the application of sanitized human urine (Oga), in combination with organic manure (OM) or solely, increases pearl millet panicle yield in women’s fields and on different local soils. In on-farm large-N trials (N = 681) with women farmers in two regions of Niger (Maradi, Tillabery), pearl millet panicle yields were compared between the control (farmer practice), and a combination of Oga and OM in the first and second year, and Oga alone in the third year. Our results showed an average panicle yield increase of about +30%, representing +200 to +300 kg ha−1. Major factors determining the yield effect are season, village, and local soil type. This study shows for the first time that Oga innovation can be used to increase pearl millet panicle yield particularly in the low fertile soils of women’s farmlands in Niger. Oga innovation is affordable, locally available, and does not pose a risk to resource-poor female farmers of Niger.

Effect of phosphorus and FYM on yield and uptake of nutrients in pearl millet

A field experiment was conducted during kharif 2015-16 at Panwari village, Agra, Uttar Pradesh to study the effect of four graded levels of FYM (0, 5, 10 and 15 t/ha) and phosphorus (0, 20, 40 and 60 kg P2O5 /ha) on yield, quality and uptake of nutrients in pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum L). Results revealed that the growth and yield attributes of pearl millet increased significantly with the application of FYM up to 10 t/ha and fertilizer P up to 40 kg P2O5/ha. The results indicated the superiority of integrated use of FYM and fertilizer phosphorus in increasing the productivity of pearl millet compared to application of fertilizer P alone. Protein content and yield in grain increased significantly with the application of 60 kg P2O5 /ha and 10 t FYM /ha over their respective controls. The uptake of N, P and K by pearl millet grain and stover increased significantly with increasing levels of P over control. The amounts of organic carbon, available N and P in post harvest soil increased significantly with the increasing levels of both FYM and phosphorus.

Development and Characterization of Physical Modified Pearl Millet Starch-Based Films.

Pearl millet is an underutilized and drought-resistant crop that is mainly used for animal feed and fodder. Starch (70%) is the main constituent of the pearl millet grain; this starch may be a good substitute for major sources of starch such as corn, rice, potatoes, etc. Starch was isolated from pearl millet grains and modified with different physical treatments (heat-moisture (HMT), microwave (MT), and sonication treatment (ST)). The amylose content and swelling capacity of the starches decreased after HMT and MT, while the reverse was observed for ST. Transition temperatures (onset (To), peak of gelatinization (Tp), and conclusion (Tc)) of the starches ranged from 62.92–76.16 °C, 67.95–81.05 °C, and 73.78–84.50 °C, respectively. After modification (HMT, MT, and ST), an increase in the transition temperatures was observed. Peak-viscosity of the native starch was observed to be 995 mPa.s., which was higher than the starch modified with HMT and MT. Rheological characteristics (storage modulus (G′) and loss modulus (G′′)) of the native and modified starches differed from 1039 to 1730 Pa and 83 to 94 Pa; the largest value was found for starch treated with ST and HMT. SEM showed cracks and holes on granule surfaces after HMT as well as MT starch granules. Films were prepared using both native and modified starches. The modification of the starches with different treatments had a significant impact on the moisture, transmittance, and solubility of films. The findings of this study will provide a better understanding of the functional properties of pearl millet starch for its possible utilization in film formation.

English

A field experiment was conducted at College Agronomy Farm, N. M. College of Agriculture, Navsari Agricultural University, Navsari during summer, 2019 and 2020 comprising four intercropping treatments i.e. pearlmillet sole, pearlmillet+greengram, pearlmillet+cowpea, pearlmillet+clusterbean and three fertility levels viz., 75 % RDF, 100 % RDF and 125 % RDF. Among the different intercropping system examined, sole pearl millet (I1) accumulated significantly less content of N and P in pearl millet grain and straw as compared to intercropping with pulses treatments. Pearl millet + green gram (I2) recorded significantly higher N and P uptake by pearl millet straw than other intercropping systems. The sole pearl millet (I1) was at par with pearl millet intercropped with green gram (I2) had significantly higher K content and uptake in pearl millet grain and straw. In case of fertility levels, nitrogen and phosphorus content and uptake in pearl millet grain and straw were recorded significantly higher by application of 100 % RDF. Significantly higher N, P and K uptake by pearl millet grain and straw in pooled results were produced by treatment combination of pearl millet + green gram (I2) intercropping along with 75 % RDF (F1).

Effect of sulphur and zinc management on yield, quality and nutrient uptake in pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum) – lentil (Lens culinaris) crop sequence

A field experiment was conducted at Panwari village of Agra district during Kharif and rabi season of 2015-16 and 2016-17 to study the effect of sulphur and zinc management on yield, nutrient uptake and residual soil fertility under pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum) – lentil (Lens culinaris Medikus) crop sequence. Four levels each of sulphur and zinc were evaluated under randomized block design with three replications. Both the nutrients were applied to pearl millet and their direct and residual response was ascertained to pearl millet and lentil in sequence. Pooled results indicated that grain and stover yield of pearl millet improved significantly with increasing levels of S up to 20 kg S ha-1 over control. An increase of 17.0 and 16.5 % in grain and stover yield was recorded with 20 kg S ha-1 over control. Similarly, grain and stover yield of pearl millet increased significantly with Zn and maximum grain (3.46 t ha-1 ) and stover (8.19 t ha-1 ) yields were recorded with 4 kg Zn ha-1 . The content and yield of protein in both the crops increased significantly with the addition of S and Zn over control. The residual effect of S in lentil was significant at 40 kg S ha-1 and grain and straw yield increments were to the extent of 18.6 and 15.8 per cent, respectively. The residual effect of 6 kg Zn ha-1 on succeeding lentil crop produced 16.7 and 14.0 % higher grain and straw yield over control, respectively. Application of S and Zn showed significantly beneficial effect on S and Zn uptake by pearl millet and succeeding lentil crop over control. Nitrogen and P uptake by both the crops also improved significantly with these elements over control

Complete replacement of maize grain with sorghum and pearl millet grains in Jumbo quail diets: Feed intake, physiological parameters, and meat quality traits.

In sub-Saharan Africa, the use of maize (Zea mays L.) grain as an energy source in poultry feeds has become unsustainable due to competing demands and suboptimal growing conditions for the maize crop. Sorghum (Sorghum bicolor Moench L.) and pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum) grains are potential sustainable alternatives, given their tolerance to local growing conditions. Therefore, this study evaluated the effect of total replacement of maize grain with whole or crushed sorghum and pearl millet grains on feed intake, and physiological and meat quality parameters of Jumbo quail. Five experimental diets were formulated by completely replacing crushed maize grain in a commercial grower diet (CON) with whole sorghum (WSG), crushed sorghum (CSG), whole millet (WMG), or crushed millet (CMG). Three hundred and fifty, two-week-old Jumbo quail chicks (74.7 ± 8.81 g live-weight) were evenly distributed into 35 replicate pens to which the experimental diets were allotted. Statistically similar (P > 0.05) weight gain and FCE values were observed between birds reared on the control and pearl millet-based diets. However, birds fed with sorghum-based diets had the lowest FCE and weight gain. Blood parameters fell within the normal ranges reported for healthy quail. Birds fed the whole sorghum grain diet had the least (P < 0.05) serum calcium and higher monocytes, cholesterol, and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) concentrations compared to those reared on the control diet. Compared to the control, the whole sorghum-containing diet reduced (P < 0.05) carcass, breast, wing, thigh, drumstick, liver, gizzard, and large intestine weights of the birds. Complete replacement of maize grain with pearl millet grain (whole or crushed) did not compromise feed intake, growth performance, and meat quality traits of the Jumbo quail birds. However, whole sorghum grain reduced growth performance of the birds.

Monitoring bioaccessibility of iron and zinc in pearl millet grain after sequential milling.

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s13197-021-05072-x.

Influence of extrusion conditions on the physical and nutritional properties of snacks from maize and pearl millet

The partial replacement of maize grits with pearl millet grains in snacks can increase their nutritional quality. This study aimed to design healthier and less expensive extruded snacks and study extrusion conditions (moisture and temperature) according to an experimental central rotational composite design. The improved snack, optimized as the desirability index of the highest expansion capacity, was extruded and flavored with cheese or ham. Acceptability was analyzed in terms of appearance, texture, flavor, and overall value attributes by typical consumers of snacks. Moisture, as opposed to temperature, was significant factor for the snack expansion. The improved snack was classified as a rich source of dietary fiber (5.9 g·100 g−1 of fresh food) and protein (10 g·100 g−1). The snacks were accepted with most scores above 6 (liked it a little). By replacing 50% of maize grits with pearl millet grain, more sensorial acceptable and healthier snacks can be obtained. Practical applications We observed that under minimal moisture and mild temperature conditions in the third zone of the extruder, snacks rich in fiber and protein, with the best expansion index and a specific volume similar to that of commercial snacks prepared with only maize grits (of poor nutritional quality) are produced. The optimized processing parameters established by mathematical modeling to reach a good expansion index could be applied to other pieces of extruder equipment for industrial purposes, as the results did not undergo any great variation at distinct moments of extrusion. We demonstrated the potential for commercialization of snacks made from maize grits and whole grain pearl millet as a product with added nutritional value. Our interest is to offer healthier options for convenience foods as high-fiber snack foods with low cost, high nutritional quality, and good acceptance by consumers, mainly children, who make snack products one of the most consumed convenience foods in the word.