Development of separation techniques for complex characterization of plant proteins and carbohydrates

In the Research Group of Cereal Science and Food Quality at the Department of Applied Biotechnology and Food Science of BME, separation technique has been part of the methods used for the complex quality assessment of food and food ingredients for a long time. Our colleagues working in our current and predecessor department achieved serious results with the help of their separation technique methods, for example in the analysis of protein and carbohydrate composition, analysis of lipids (fatty acids), quantitative and qualitative evaluation of biogenic amines and amino acids, etc. In addition to determining the composition of the raw material, the impact of different molecules on quality and technological properties was always an important question. It was always possible to investigate this using the modern tools and methods of the time, so the application of gel chromatography, high-performance liquid chromatography, gas chromatography and electrophoretic techniques determined the quality of both research and education. In recent years, the research group has mainly dealt with the quality of grains, their composition, their technological potential and their evaluation from a food safety aspect. For the research of these areas, molecular level (mainly protein and fibre composition) examinations have become essential, for which modern electrophoretic and chromatographic methods are excellent tools. However, their proper application is a great challenge, because in most cases, serious method development and/or method adaptation and partial validation tasks are required for their routine use. In the following, we provide a brief overview of the projects and results achieved in our research group in the field of separation techniques through a few application examples

Elválasztástechnikai módszerek fejlesztése növényi fehérjék és szénhidrátok komplex jellemzésére

A BME Alkalmazott Biotechnológia és Élelmiszertudományi Tanszékén működő Gabonatudományi és Élelmiszerminőség Kutatócsoportban az elválasztástechnika már hosszú idő óta részét képezi az élelmiszerek, élelmiszer összetevők komplex minőségi értékeléséhez alkalmazott módszereknek. A jelenlegi és jogelőd tanszékünkön dolgozó kollégáink komoly eredményeket értek el az elválasztástechnikai módszereik segítségével például a fehérje és szénhidrát összetétel vizsgálatában, a lipidek (zsírsavak) analízisében, a biogén aminok és aminosavak mennyiségi és minőségi értékelésében, stb. Az alapanyag összetételi meghatározása mellett fontos kérdés volt az egyes molekulák minőségre, technológiai tulajdonságokra gyakorolt hatása. Ezt mindig az adott korban korszerűnek számító eszközöket és módszereket felhasználva volt lehetőség vizsgálni, így gélkromatográfia, nagyhatékonyságú folyadékkromatográfia, gázkromatográfia és elektroforetikus technikák alkalmazása fémjelezte mind a kutatás, mind az oktatás színvonalát. Az elmúlt években a kutatócsoportunkban főként a gabonák minőségével, összetételükkel, technológia potenciáljukkal és élelmiszerbiztonsági szempontú értékelésükkel foglalkoztunk. Ezeknek a területeknek a kutatására a részletes molekuláris szintű (elsősorban fehérje és rost összetételi) vizsgálatok elengedhetetlenné váltak, amelyek kiváló eszközei a modern elektroforetikus és kromatográfiás módszerek. Ezek megfelelő alkalmazása azonban nagy kihívást jelent, mert rutinszerű használatukhoz a legtöbb esetben komoly módszerfejlesztési és/vagy módszeradaptálási, részleges validálási feladatok elvégzése szükséges. A következőkben néhány alkalmazási példán keresztül rövid áttekintést adunk a kutatócsoportunkban az elválasztástechnika területét érintő projektekről és elért eredményeinkről

Recent past, present and hoped-for future of cereal science and plant protein research

The fields of science indicated in the title represent centuries old research and development activities of the current department and its legal predecessor institutions, matching the standards, expectations and possibilities of the given era. It is of course impossible to summarize all this in a few pages. A tangential or more detailed description of some areas can be found in other chapters of this issue compiled to review the scientific activities of the department (e.g., in the articles of András Salgó and Ferenc Békés, Zsuzsanna Bugyi et al., Eszter Schallet al.) and in the summary article presenting the department’s food science activities [1]. In our current paper, we attempt to provide a brief overview of research directions and results that, from the 1990s to the present day, have played a decisive role in the activities of the department, including the Cereal Science and Food Quality Research Group, as well as in the development and shaping of its research profile. The years following the regime change were decisive in the lives of all of us. The conditions for education and the cultivation of science changed continuously and significantly, mostly worsening in this transition period. Many people questioned whether it was worth continuing to cultivate the old, traditional areas, or whether we should be more open, modernize and look for new ways, taking advantage of the extremely slow but continuously opening opportunities for building domestic and, especially, international relations, and later for tenders and financing. Progress, development, and openness to new ideas should be essential qualities for an educator and researcher. However, the acquisition of knowledge, experience, and skills takes time, as does the creation and maintenance of the conditions necessary for the cultivation of old or new fields

Variation in the Content and Composition of Tocols in a Wheat Population

Wheat is a well-known source of B vitamins but also contains significant amounts of vitamin E and related tocols, which have a number of positive health benefits. However, there are no reports on increasing the tocol content of wheat. A prerequisite for increasing the tocol content is the identification of variation in its amount within wheat and related cereals. We therefore determined the tocol content and composition in the grain of 230 recombinant inbred lines (RILs) of a diverse biparental wheat population (Mv Toborzó/Tommi), showing variation in the total content from 13.69 to 45.18 μg/g d.m. The total content also showed transgressive segregation in the population. The effect of the genotype on the variance components of tocols was studied, and the broad-sense heritability was calculated to be 0.71. The lines were also grouped based on their tocol content and analyzed for their chemical composition and breadmaking quality. The high heritability value and the wide variation found in the total amount indicate that increasing the content of tocols is a possible breeding strategy

Variation in the Content and Composition of Tocols in a Wheat Population

Wheat is a well-known source of B vitamins but also contains significant amounts of vitamin E and related tocols, which have a number of positive health benefits. However, there are no reports on increasing the tocol content of wheat. A prerequisite for increasing the tocol content is the identification of variation in its amount within wheat and related cereals. We therefore determined the tocol content and composition in the grain of 230 recombinant inbred lines (RILs) of a diverse biparental wheat population (Mv Toborzo/Tommi), showing variation in the total content from 13.69 to 45.18 mu g/g d.m. The total content also showed transgressive segregation in the population. The effect of the genotype on the variance components of tocols was studied, and the broad-sense heritability was calculated to be 0.71. The lines were also grouped based on their tocol content and analyzed for their chemical composition and breadmaking quality. The high heritability value and the wide variation found in the total amount indicate that increasing the content of tocols is a possible breeding strategy.Peer reviewe

Fibre and short-chain carbohydrate composition in rye varieties, novel industrial milling fractions and breads

Rye is an important raw material of bread due to tradition and its favourable nutritional and technological qualities. Despite the beneficial fibre composition, a special group of short-chain carbohydrates, the so called FODMAPs (fermentable oligo-, di-, monosaccharides and polyols) may cause problems for patients with irritable bowel syndrome. The aim of our work was to investigate the non-starch carbohydrate (dietary fibre compounds, short-chain carbohydrates) composition of rye varieties, and of their novel milling fractions obtained from industrial milling trials and test loaves made from them. Regarding fibre and short chain carbohydrate composition, rye varieties did not show significant differences. In new subfractions, fibre and FODMAP composition were described, among profiles most of them differ from commonly used flours, independently from variety. The yeast fermentation and baking caused a decrease in water-extractable arabinoxylan content, at the same time increased the substitution pattern of water-extractable arabinoxylans. Furthermore, breadmaking process decreased the fructan content, and therefore increased the fructose level, thus modifying the short-chain carbohydrate composition. Based on our knowledge, this research is among the first ones investigating the fibre and short-chain composition of rye from the seeds to the consumable final products

Variation in the Content and Composition of Tocols in a Wheat Population

Wheat is a well-known source of B vitamins but also contains significant amounts of vitamin E and related tocols, which have a number of positive health benefits. However, there are no reports on increasing the tocol content of wheat. A prerequisite for increasing the tocol content is the identification of variation in its amount within wheat and related cereals. We therefore determined the tocol content and composition in the grain of 230 recombinant inbred lines (RILs) of a diverse biparental wheat population (Mv Toborzo/Tommi), showing variation in the total content from 13.69 to 45.18 mu g/g d.m. The total content also showed transgressive segregation in the population. The effect of the genotype on the variance components of tocols was studied, and the broad-sense heritability was calculated to be 0.71. The lines were also grouped based on their tocol content and analyzed for their chemical composition and breadmaking quality. The high heritability value and the wide variation found in the total amount indicate that increasing the content of tocols is a possible breeding strategy