Informatics Publishing Limited

H. E. Shweatha ¹, Kalpana Platel ¹

Affiliations
1 CSIR-Central Food Technological Research Institute, Mysore - 570 020, IN

Abstract

In view of the widespread prevalence of micronutrient deficiencies, there is a need to evolve food-based strategies to enhance their bioavailability from predominantly vegetarian diets. Ethylene Diamine Tetra Acetic acid (EDTA), a known metal chelator, has been previously found to enhance the bioaccessibility of iron and zinc from fortified millet flours. The present investigation was undertaken to examine the effect of EDTA on the bioaccessibility of iron and zinc from germinated, fermented and malted food grains. EDTA was added to the processed foods at molar ratios of 1:1, 1:1.5 and 1:2, relative to inherent iron and zinc content. EDTA significantly enhanced the bioaccessibility of iron from all the processed foods examined, this beneficial effect being highly significant in the germinated and malted grains and significantly higher than the effect of the processing method per se. In the fermented foods, the effect of EDTA was to a lesser extent, except in the case of dhokla, where it was significant. EDTA significantly increased the bioaccessibility of zinc from malted grains, but this increase was only marginal in germinated and fermented grains. Germinated and fermented foods are a common part of Indian diets and are widely consumed, while malted grains find use in the preparation of weaning and geriatric foods. The results of this investigation have shown that EDTA could be used as an enhancer of bioaccessibility of iron and zinc from such traditionally processed foods. This strategy could also be adopted at the household level to improve mineral bioavailability from foods.

Keywords

EDTA, Iron, Zinc, Bioaccessibility, Sprouting, Malting, Fermentation.

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Kalpana Platel ¹, Krishnapura Srinivasan ¹

Affiliations
1 Department of Biochemistry, CSIR - Central Food Technological Research Institute, Mysore – 570 020, IN

Abstract

Chekurmanis (Sauropus androgynus) belonging to Euphorbiaceae, is a perennial shrub, growing wildly in Southeast Asia. The leaves of chekurmanis are highly nutritious, being a very rich source of micronutrients and protein. In this study, chekurmanis leaves were evaluated for protein and micronutrient content at different stages of maturity. Maturity of the leaves did not alter the rich content of protein which remained around 22.0 g/100 g. Total dietary fibre content of the leaves ranged between 34 and 36% at different stages of maturity. Fully matured leaves contained a significantly higher amount of calcium, as compared to the tender leaves. The iron content of these leaves ranged from 3.89 to 4.50 mg/100 g, while the zinc content of the same was between 1.26 and 1.48 mg/100 g. The bioaccessibility of iron and zinc was significantly higher in the tender leaves. The tender and partially mature leaves of chekurmanis contained 74 and 69 mg/100 g of niacin, respectively. The β-carotene content of the leaves ranged from 7400 to 9250 μg/100 g, while that of vitamin E ranged between 17.6 to 15.6 mg/100 g. Chekurmanis leaves contain an alkaloid, the content of which was significantly higher in mature leaves (1740 mg/100 g) as compared to tender leaves (1439 mg/100 g). The alkaloid content of chekurmanis leaves was significantly reduced upon pressure cooking. This is the first report on the nutrient content of chekurmanis leaves at different stages of maturity, as also on the bioaccessibility of minerals.

Keywords

Chekurmanis Leaves, Nutritional Profile, Stages of Maturity, Bioaccessibility Of Minerals, Alkaloid Content.

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