•Comprehensive review on diverse aspects of Tartary buckwheat.•Tartary buckwheat has higher levels of polyphenols than major cereals.•Tartary buckwheat has higher bioactivities than major ...cereals.•Tartary buckwheat has great potential as functional food material.
Tartary buckwheat (Fagopyrum tataricum) contains a range of nutrients including bioactive carbohydrates and proteins, polyphenols, phytosterols, vitamins, carotenoids, and minerals. The unique composition of Tartary buckwheat contributes to their various health benefits such as anti-oxidative, anti-cancer, anti-hypertension, anti-diabetic, cholesterol-lowering, and cognition-improving. Compared with the more widely cultivated and utilised common buckwheat (F. esculentum), Tartary buckwheat tends to contain higher amounts of certain bioactive components such as rutin, therefore, showing higher efficiency in preventing/treating various disorders. This review summarises the current knowledge of the chemical composition of Tartary buckwheat, and their bio-functions as studied by both in vitro and in vivo models. Tartary buckwheat can be further developed as a sustainable crop for functional food production to improve human health.
Ultrasonication is a physical treatment employing ultrasound with frequency higher than the threshold of human hearing. In a starch–water system, ultrasonication locally creates strong shear force, ...high temperature, and free radicals which change the structure and properties of starch. The extent of changes depends on frequency and intensity of ultrasound, duration, and settings of ultrasonication, temperature and moisture content of the system, as well as the starch type. This review summarizes the current knowledge on the influence of ultrasonication on the composition, structure, physicochemical properties, and modifications of starch. The starch-related applications as affected by ultrasonication are also reviewed. Future research to better utilize this green technology is suggested.
•Impact of ultrasound on diverse aspects of starch reviewed.•Structure–property relations discussed.•Directions to better utilize ultrasound for starch applications suggested.
Buckwheat consumption is associated with positive health effects in humans. Buckwheat has diverse nutrients with biological functions. Buckwheat storage protein is gluten free and is a major ...bio-factor responsible for the functions. The protein can be a source of allergens. It is important to understand the biological properties and food uses of buckwheat protein to develop buckwheat as a “healthy” grain.
This review summarizes diverse biological activities of proteins and peptides from both common and Tartary buckwheat seeds. Strategies to reduce the symptoms of buckwheat protein allergy are discussed. The properties of the proteins and peptides in relation to the quality of buckwheat based products are also reviewed. Research gaps in better understanding and using buckwheat proteins and peptides for food applications are identified.
The protein isolates from buckwheat have been hydrolyzed into a range of peptides. These peptides showed diverse biological activities in vitro and in vivo. They include trypsin inhibition, antiaging, modulating gut microbiota, prevention of cardiovascular diseases, blood pressure lowering, immunomodulatory, antidiabetic, antimicrobial, anticancer and antioxidant capacities. Buckwheat has been processed into a range of products such as vinegar, beverages and breads. The quality of these products can be significantly affected by the protein and peptide properties. Overall, buckwheat proteins and peptides have potential to be developed into functional food products.
•Buckwheat protein is gluten free but is also a source of allergens.•Buckwheat peptides are antimicrobial, antihypertensive, antidiabetic and antiaging.•There are diverse strategies to reduce the allergenicity of buckwheat proteins.•Buckwheat peptides and proteins showed similar bio-functions to other peptides.•Buckwheat proteins and peptides have many potential food applications.
•Influence of basic and optional ingredients on steamed bread quality reviewed.•A significant portion of references from Chinese journals and theses.•Further research directions to improve steamed ...bread quality suggested.
Chinese steamed bread (CSB) is a staple food in China since ancient time. The basic ingredients include wheat flour, yeast/sourdough, and water. Current consumer trends urge the production of CSB on a large scale as well as the formulation of healthier CSB with specific nutritional benefits. This requires a better definition of the relationship between the properties of ingredients/chemical components and CSB quality. This review summarises the recent advances in understanding the roles of basic and optional ingredients and their chemical components in the appearance, textural, sensory, and shelf-life properties of CSB, and provides suggestions for further research to match the current trends.
There is increasing interest in utilization of buckwheat for healthy food applications. Common buckwheat (Fagopyrum esculentum) and tartary buckwheat (Fagopyrum tataricum) are cultivated in Asia, ...Europe, and Americas for various food formulation and production. Starch, the major component of the seeds, may account over 70% of the dry weight. Therefore, it is expected that, to a large extent, the quality of starch determines the quality of buckwheat food products. Furthermore, Buckwheat starch has great potential for various food and non-food uses due to the unique structural and functional features.
This review summarises the current knowledge of chemical composition, chemical structure of amylose and amylopectin, physical structure of granules, physicochemical properties, enzyme susceptibility, modifications, and uses of buckwheat starch. Suggestions on how to better understand and utilise the starch are provided.
Amylose contents of buckwheat starch ranged from 20 to 28%. Starch granules are most polygonal with size ranging from ∼2 to 15 μm and an average diameter of ∼6–7 μm. The polymorph is A-type. The amount of extra-long unit chains of amylopectin (DP > 100) is higher than that of cereal amylopectins. Low glycaemic index of buckwheat food products could be attributed to the non-starch components. Buckwheat starch has been used as fat replacer, ingredient for extruded products, nanocomposite material, and fermentation substrate for alcoholic beverage. It may be concluded that buckwheat starch can be a unique source of specialty starch for innovative food and non-food applications.
•Diverse aspects of buckwheat starch is comprehensively reviewed.•Starch structure-property relationships are explored.•How buckwheat starch can be better utilised is suggested.
Proanthocyanidins (PAs) are a class of oligomeric flavonoids found in a variety of plant foods. Intake of PAs in human diet has been associated with a reduced occurrence of various chronic disorders. ...Cereal and pseudocereal grains are staple food items. Grain genotypes containing PAs can be developed as functional foods to efficiently improve human health. This review summarises the occurrence of PAs in diverse grains, including rice, wheat, barley, sorghum, millets, buckwheat, and some forage grasses. Great diversity in PA structure and composition has been recorded. The biological activities of the grain PAs, such as antioxidant, antiinflammatory, anticancer, and antidiabetic capacities, are also reviewed. The bioavailability and metabolism of grain PAs in human digestive tract are discussed. Future research directions are suggested on how to improve our understandings of the chemistry of PAs in cereals and pseudocereals and of the biological properties for human health applications.
Barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) is mainly used as animal feed and in malting. In recent years, there has been growing interest in using barley for food production. Starch is the major component of the ...kernel and may amount up to over 70% of the dry weight. The quality of barley products is much determined by its starch properties such as gelatinization and retrogradation. Starch is also a by‐product of the barley fractionation industry and can be utilized for value‐added products. This review summarizes the recent developments in our understanding of the isolation, chemical composition, granular structure, chemical structure of starch components, physicochemical properties, and various modifications of barley starch. The structure–function relationships of starch are discussed. This review provides a basis for better utilizing barley starch, as well as the further development of barley as a sustainable crop.
Sorghum has great drought resistance and can be cultivated on marginal lands with minimal input costs. Thus, the supply of sorghum starch, the major component of the seeds, can be cheap and ...sustainable. This review summarizes the present knowledge of extraction, composition, granular and molecular structures, physicochemical properties, modifications, and uses of sorghum starch, and provides suggestions for needed research to improve our understanding and utilization of this starch.
There has been increased interest in millet utilization due to the various “rediscovered” health benefits and also critical role in food security in semiarid areas of Africa and Asia. The major ...component of millets is starch, which may amount up to 70% of the seed and determines the quality of millet products. This review summarizes the current knowledge of the isolation, chemical composition, structure, physicochemical properties, enzyme susceptibility, modifications, and uses of millet starch. Lack of systematic knowledge of millet starch seriously hinders further development of millets as sustainable crops. Needed research to diversify the variations in the quality and to improve the utilization of this starch is suggested.
•Comprehensive review on diverse aspects of millet starch•Great diversity in properties and structure of millet starch observed•How millet starch could be better utilized suggested
Fonio grains are a type of small‐seeded cereals native to Western Africa and are important cereal crops for food security. The two species are white fonio (Digitaria exilis) (commonly called acha) ...and black fonio (Digitaria iburua) (commonly called iburu). As a novel food, fonio has attracted attention from other parts of the world due to their attractive nutritional properties (e.g., in whole grain form and being gluten free) and potential food applications. The information regarding the functional properties and applications of fonio is rather scattered. This review summarizes the chemical composition, physicochemical and nutritional properties, and diverse food applications of fonio. The nutritional composition and processing properties of fonio are similar to other cereals. Fonio has potential to be complementary to major cereals for diverse food uses. There are research opportunities to better explore fonio grains for value‐added applications.
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