Determination of Repeatability and Reproducibility of a New Rapid Enzyme Method for the Determination of Glycoside Nitrile in Malted Barley

Brown, Amira; Morrall, P.

doi:10.1002/j.2050-0416.1996.tb00908.x

Cited by 5 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 5 publications

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“…Glycosidic nitrile develops in the living tissues of barley including leaves and shoots (rootlets not included). Cyanogenic glycosides such as GN act as a defense mechanism for plants against pathogens and herbivores [1,2]. However, in the distilling process GN is enzymatically converted to cyanide which then becomes EC in the presence of copper and ethanol, with heat promoting the conversion.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Levels and management of glycosidic nitrile production in North American grown barley varieties

Turner,

Sherman,

Lachowiec

et al. 2023

JDS

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Glycosidic nitrile (GN) from malted barley has been identified as the primary precursor of ethyl carbamate (urethane) in new-make whiskey. A specific GN, epiheterodendrin (EPH), is responsible. EPH is a type of cyanogenic glycoside, forming toxic hydrogen cyanide in the pathway leading to ethyl carbamate (EC). The presence of EC, a known carcinogen in many fermented foods, is regulated to varying degrees. For whiskey, the Canadian government has mandated a 150 ppb limit, while the US has a voluntary limit of 125 ppb. In Europe, standards call for newly released distilling barleys to be of the non-GN type. North American breeders are just beginning to select for non-GN and options are likely a decade away. This work considers GN levels of common North American varieties and evaluates malting regime variations, including steep out moisture (40 percent and 45 percent), length of germination (two, four, and six days), and temperature (14 °C, 15 °C and 16 °C) to determine impacts on GN. General standards hold that low producers fall under 0.5 g/tonne GN while high producers sit over 1.5 g/tonne. Varieties tested here averaged 0.20 – 1.52 g/tonne across treatments. As expected, management to minimize acrospire growth mitigated GN while all three process variations had significant impacts: ranges being 0.70 – 1.38 g/tonne (germination time), 0.83 – 1.09 g/tonne (temperature) and 0.56 – 0.96 g/tonne (steep out moisture). While this work does not provide a long-term solution, management is a tool while breeding programs develop North Americana non-GN varieties.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Levels and management of glycosidic nitrile production in North American grown barley varieties

Turner,

Sherman,

Lachowiec

et al. 2023

JDS

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Quantifying cyanogenic glycoside production in the acrospires of germinating barley grains

Swanston¹

1999

J. Sci. Food Agric.

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125^thAnniversary Review: Barley research in relation to Scotch whisky production: a journey to new frontiers

Bringhurst

2015

J. Inst. Brew.

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Human experience with barley has been well established for several millennia and barley research has been fundamental to our understanding of raw materials for malting, brewing and distilling. Distillers have long been indebted to malting, brewing and distilling researchers for information on barley (and malt) relevant to their operations. Originally distilling barley research was focussed on the parameters defining barley quality and plant performance, but it has developed to further our understanding of the properties and genetics of barley and malt. Through the years, several strategic milestones can be identified showing a progression of related research themes, culminating in our current state of knowledge of barley. These include the development of the fermentability method, together with the biochemistry and enzymology underlying starch and cell wall hydrolysis, which resulted in a greater understanding of processing properties and subsequent improvements in performance. Ethyl carbamate is a barley-derived carcinogen present in a range of potable spirits, which has been a concern for distillers; the identification of the genetic marker for the barley precursor epiheterodendrin laid the foundations for the application of modern (non-GMO) genetics to developing improved barley varieties, which will benefit the whole supply chain. Together these approaches underline the mutual interdependence of applied research and genetic approaches in achieving substantial advances in our knowledge.

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Determination of Repeatability and Reproducibility of a New Rapid Enzyme Method for the Determination of Glycoside Nitrile in Malted Barley

Cited by 5 publications

References 5 publications

Levels and management of glycosidic nitrile production in North American grown barley varieties

Levels and management of glycosidic nitrile production in North American grown barley varieties

Quantifying cyanogenic glycoside production in the acrospires of germinating barley grains

125^thAnniversary Review: Barley research in relation to Scotch whisky production: a journey to new frontiers

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Determination of Repeatability and Reproducibility of a New Rapid Enzyme Method for the Determination of Glycoside Nitrile in Malted Barley

Cited by 5 publications

References 5 publications

Levels and management of glycosidic nitrile production in North American grown barley varieties

Levels and management of glycosidic nitrile production in North American grown barley varieties

Quantifying cyanogenic glycoside production in the acrospires of germinating barley grains

125thAnniversary Review: Barley research in relation to Scotch whisky production: a journey to new frontiers

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Product

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125^thAnniversary Review: Barley research in relation to Scotch whisky production: a journey to new frontiers