Changes in chemical composition of germinated leguminous under abiotic stress conditions

Abstract

The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of abiotic stress conditions on the synthesis of compounds with antioxidant properties in germinating seeds. The seeds of edible lentils (Lens culinaris L.), alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.), and mung beans (Vigna radiata L.) were germinated for 120 hours. We studied the influence of abiotic stress on the amount of dry matter, vitamin C and phenolic compounds, as well as flavonoids, in germinated seeds. The use of higher than optimal germination temperatures led to a higher accumulation of dry matter in the mung bean, while the accumulation of phenolic compounds and flavonoids was higher in the alfalfa sprouted seeds. Oxidative stress substantially increased the content of dry matter in the seeds of mung bean, and more vitamin C was found in the lentils. The conditions of abiotic stress in lentil seeds during their sprouting reduced the amount of phenolic compounds in comparison to that in the control variant of the seeds. However, these same conditions (with the exception of oxidative stress) benefitted the accumulation of phenolic compounds in alfalfa seeds.

Phenolic Compounds, Antioxidant Capacity, and Protein Content of Three Varieties of Germinated Quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa Willd)

“…It was observed that, after 24 h of germination, the TP for the Salcedo INIA variety had an increase of 61,3% and, 79,0% after 48 h. The Pasankalla variety increased to 55,2% and 110,7% after 24 and 48 h, respectively (Table 2). It could also be observed that Negra collana reported the highest increase (152,6% after 48 h), which is due to its genotypic differences; since this variety is darker, it releases a greater amount of phenolic compounds due to the leaching effect during germination (Televičiutė et al, 2020;Piñuel et al, 2019).…”

“…During the germination process, the enzymatic systems are activated, mobilizing reserve proteins located in the cotyledons of the quinoa grain. In the same way, changes in the amino acid composition occur due to enzymatic activity (Gan et al, 2016;Televičiutė et al, 2020), which allows the production of peptides of intermediate molecular weight due biological activity (Torres, Cova, and Valera et al, 2018;Banchuen et al, 2009). This also happens with the mobilization of nitrogen stored in the quinoa grain, which allows a significant increase in protein, as observed by El-Safy, Mukhtar, and Salem (2013), Graf et al (2014), .…”

“…It is due to the fact that quinoa grains suffer biotic and abiotic stress during germination, which induces the generation mainly of oxygen-reactive spices (ROS). These compounds are vital to protecting the grains during germination (Shulaev, Cortes, Miller, and Mittler, 2008;Televičiutė et al, 2020) and for the biochemical and physiological functions of the sprouts, releasing aglycones due to enzymatic activity, which translates into an increase in phenols (Shetty, 2004;Sani et al, 2012). Another critical aspect is the germination temperature, which was 35 • C for this research.…”

“…Another critical aspect is the germination temperature, which was 35 • C for this research. The recommended standard is between 35 and 45 • C (Televičiutė et al, 2020).…”

“…The germination process allows obtaining grains with high biological activity after enzymatic hydrolysis, thus enabling the accumulation of bioactive compounds such as polyphenols (Gan, Wang, Lui, Wu, and Corke, 2016;Televičiutė et al, 2020), which improves antioxidant activity (Banchuen, Thammarutwasik, Ooraikul, Wuttijumnong, and Sirivongpaisal, 2009;Sani, Iqbal, Chan, and Ismail, 2012). Thus, the germination process makes quinoa a more functional food (Dávila, Sangronis, and Granito, 2003;Graf et al, 2014;Mariod and Salama, 2020), which implies a new way of sell a nutraceutical food, with good acceptance, especially in people who cannot consume food from animal sources (Piñuel et al, 2019).…”