THE SEED VIGOUR OF SPELT PRODUCED AT THE MAIZE RESEARCH INSTITUTE “ZEMUN POLJE”

Spelt (Triticum spelta L.) has been increasingly attracting producers due to the biological properties and chemical composition of its seeds. As high-quality seeds are necessary for successful production, the vigour of organically and conventionally produced spelt seeds has been studied and results are presented in this paper. The seeds of the variety Nirvana produced by both methods at the Maize Research Institute “Zemun Polje” in 2015 were observed. According to the results, the germination energy of conventionally and organically produced seeds amounted to 30% and 69%, respectively. The total germination of conventionally and organically produced spelt seeds amounted to 99% and 93%, respectively. The percentage of abnormal seedlings of spelt produced by both methods amounted to 1% on average. The participation of diseased and dead seeds was higher in organically produced seeds (6%) than in conventionally produced seeds (0%). After the seed accelerated ageing test, a higher germination was observed in conventionally produced seeds (75%) than in organically produced seeds (68%). The electric conductivity of conventionally produced seeds amounted to 189.4 μS/cm and 195.2 μS/cm in the first and the second replication, respectively, while the values of organically produced seeds amounted to 95.5 μS/cm and 98.6 μS/cm, in the first and the second replication, respectively. The results obtained by the electrical conductivity test indicated that the conventionally produced spelt seeds (32.33 µS/cm g) were classified into the category of low vigour seeds in comparison to organically produced spelt seeds (27.65 µS/cm g). © 2022 University of Belgrade - Faculty of Agriculture. All Rights Reserved

Mineral and nutritional assessments of soybean, buckwheat, spelt, and maize grains grown conventionally and organically

The present work determined complete mineral profile of four different types of grains (spelt, soybean, maize, and buckwheat) grown under two growing systems – conventional and organic. The contents of 20 macro-, micro- and trace elements were analysed in the examined grains by inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES). In most samples, nine elements were present in concentrations higher than 10 mg/kg. The remaining elements were present at lower concentrations or in traces or not detected in certain samples. Aluminium and arsenic, as two toxic elements, were detected only in organic buckwheat grains. Based on the obtained results for the mineral contents, a nutritive assessment of the quality of grains of spelt, soybean, maize, and buckwheat were made. Results of nutritional assessment showed that spelt, soybean, and buckwheat grains could potentially be good sources of several minerals for human diet. On the other hand, the presence of some toxic elements, such as cadmium and strontium, should be monitored. Results of principal component analysis (PCA) and hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA) shown that the mineral composition, to a much greater extent, depended on the botanical origin of grains as compared to the production system

Comparison of sugars, lipids and phenolics content in the grains of organically and conventionally grown soybean in Serbia

The aim of the current study was to determine the content of several primary metabolites: total soluble sugars, starch and lipids, soluble sugars, fatty acids and triacylglycerols profile, and secondary metabolites: total phenolics and flavonoids, in the grains of soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merr.) cultivar ‘Kaća’. Additionally, grain antioxidant properties were assessed using ABTS•+ scavenging capacity and ferric reducing power (FRP) assays. Soybean was developed and grown in Serbia under two cultivation systems (conventional and organic) during two growing seasons (2016 and 2017). In both growing seasons and cultivation systems, soybean grains were characterised by reduced lipid content (8.16–14.34%) and as an excellent source of polyunsaturated fatty acids. Triacylglycerols (TAGs) with 44 equivalent carbon numbers (ECN44) represented the main fraction (30.95–32.79%) followed by ECN46 TAGs (23.27–26.36%). Low total soluble sugars (2.36–11.51%) content was determined. High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) analysis revealed a significant prevalence of non-reducing disaccharides (1.41–6.57%) among the individual sugars. Soybean grains were proved as a good source of phenolic (2493.9–4419.5 mg kg-1) and flavonoid (292.7–500.9 mg kg-1) compounds with the dominance of free (extractable) fractions. Strong positive correlations were observed between both cultivation systems and growing seasons indicating no clear differences for the majority of analysed parameters. All examined extracts possessed a significant ability (27.6–38.2%) to neutralize ABTS•+ radicals, while in the case of FRP assay a significant ability for iron ions (Fe3+) reduction was recorded for the samples from the second growing season

Bioaccumulation process and health risk assessment of toxic elements in tomato fruit grown under Zn nutrition treatment

The aim of this work was to determine elements composition and bioaccumulation process in ripe tomato fruits influenced by zinc feeding of plants which was applied in three different doses. Macro- and microelement content in growing soil, seeds, and fruits was determined by ICP-OES method. Health risk assessment was calculated according to the presence of some toxic elements. It was found that predominant macroelements were phosphorus, potassium, calcium, and magnesium followed by other ten determined elements. The presence of five potentially toxic elements (cadmium, chromium, lead, nickel, and strontium) in seed and fruits was detected. Bioaccumulation differences (especially in case of potassium) for some elements in seed and fruit were established. In both cases, calcium and lead were the only elements with antagonistic effect towards zinc feeding process. Health risk assessment has shown that acute risk is low for all toxic elements (according to acute hazard quotient (HQ) calculation) except for cadmium in fruit seed, where it can be characterized as moderate. Long-term hazard quotient calculation showed moderate risk in the case of lead (fruit skin and seed) and low values for other toxic elements. Since the most part of toxic elements was accumulated in tomato fruit skin and seed, peeling of fruits can significantly reduce health risk

Masnokiselinski profil organskog i konvencionalnog semena spelte

Usled izuzetno povoljnih prehrambenih, medicinskih i agronomskih karakteristika, kao i povoljnog hemijskog sastava semena koje je u skladu sa najsavremenijim nutritionističkim zahtevima, proizvodnja spelte dobija sve veći značaj, naročito u organskoj proizvodnji hrane. Veoma važan nutritivni faktor namirnica predstavlja sadržaj masnih kiselina u njima, neophodnih za pravilno funkcionisanje ljudskog organizma. Cilj ovog rada bio je da GC-FID metodom ispita sadržaj masnih kiselina u organskom i konvencionalnom semenu spelte, poreklom iz 2015 i 2016. godine. Sadržaj masnih kiselina izražen je kao % sadržaj u odnosu na ukupne masne kiseline. Detektovano je deset masnih kiselina. Kod obe vrste semena, u najvećoj količini se nalaze linolna (C18:2n-6) i oleinska (C18:1n-9) kiselina. Najveći udeo polinezasićenih masnih kiselina sadrži seme konvencionalne spelte (59.46 %), dok se u organskom semenu iz 2016. godine nalazio najveći udeo zasićenih (18.33 %) i mononezasićenih masnih kiselina (26.71 %).Due to the extremely favorable nutritional, medical and agronomic characteristics, as well as the favorable chemical composition of seed which is in accordance with the current nutritional requirements, spelt production is gaining increasing importance, especially in organic food production. The fatty acids (FAs) content is a very important nutritional factor. Adequate FAs daily intake is necessary for the proper functioning of the human body. The aim of this paper was to examine fatty acids content in organic and conventional spelt seeds produced during 2015 and 2016 year. GC-FID method was used for FAs determination. FAs content is expressed as % of content in relation to the total fatty acids. Ten fatty acids were detected. Both types of seeds contained linoleic (C18:2n-6) and oleic acid (C18:1n-9) as predominant. Conventional spelt seed possessed higher content of polyunsaturated fatty acids (59.46 %) while organic seed from 2016 contained higher amount of saturated (18.33 %) and monounsaturated fatty acids (26.71 %)