Borgonovi Sara Margherita, Marzocchi Silvia, Pasini Federica, Bordoni Alessandra, Barbiroli Alberto, Marti Alessandra, Iametti Stefania, Di Nunzio Mattia
Department of Food, Environmental and Nutritional Sciences (DeFENS), University of Milan, Via Celoria 2, 20133 Milan, Italy.
Department of Agricultural and Food Sciences (DISTAL), University of Bologna, Piazza Goidanich 60, 47521 Cesena, Italy.
Molecules. 2025 Sep 4;30(17):3622. doi: 10.3390/molecules30173622.
Thanks to its tolerance to drought, sorghum is a cereal crop that is extensively cultivated in the sub-Saharan region. Its good nutritional value makes it an interesting raw material for the food industry, although several anti-nutritional features pose a challenge to exploiting its full potential. In this study, we evaluated whether the process of germination may represent a way of improving the macro- and micro-molecular profile of sorghum, lowering the content of anti-nutritional factors, and promoting the synthesis of bioactive compounds. Germination for 48 and especially 72 h promoted the hydrolysis of starch and proteins, enhanced antioxidant activity, increased the content of polyphenols, mainly flavonols and flavanones, and promoted the conversion of γ- to α-isomers of tocopherols. At the same time, it significantly reduced the concentration of phytates and linoleic acid, enhancing pepsin activity and contributing to the inaugural examination of the impact of sprouted sorghum on digestive protease activity. These findings could help to promote the utilization of sprouted sorghum as a premium ingredient for food products, providing significant nutritional advantages.
由于高粱耐旱，它是撒哈拉以南地区广泛种植的谷类作物。其良好的营养价值使其成为食品工业中一种有趣的原材料，尽管一些抗营养特性对充分挖掘其潜力构成了挑战。在本研究中，我们评估了发芽过程是否可能是一种改善高粱宏观和微观分子特征、降低抗营养因子含量以及促进生物活性化合物合成的方法。发芽48小时，尤其是72小时，促进了淀粉和蛋白质的水解，增强了抗氧化活性，增加了多酚（主要是黄酮醇和黄烷酮）的含量，并促进了生育酚γ-异构体向α-异构体的转化。同时，它显著降低了植酸盐和亚油酸的浓度，增强了胃蛋白酶活性，并有助于初步研究发芽高粱对消化蛋白酶活性的影响。这些发现有助于推动将发芽高粱用作食品的优质成分，提供显著的营养优势。
