Possibilities of reducing amounts of vicine and convicine in faba bean suspensions and sourdoughs

Minimizing anti-nutritional factors in wet protein extraction from Swedish faba beans through the application of response surface methodology

Faba beans, rich in protein and ideal for Swedish cultivation, are limited in food industry use due to anti-nutritional factors (ANFs) that hinder nutrient absorption. An extraction method was developed in our study to mitigate ANFs in faba beans, using aqueous alkaline methods and isoelectric precipitation with differential salt concentration. This method yielded 15.8 g of protein per 100 g of flour, with a protein concentration exceeding 83% of the total extract. It reduced ANFs like phytic acid (28.0%), lectins (87.5%), vicine (98.5%), and convicine (99.7%). Extraction conditions were optimized using response surface methodology, identifying pH 6, 2 h, and 20 °C as the most effective parameters, achieving an 86% reduction in phytic acid, closely matched the model's predictions (R2 = 0.945). This method effectively reduced ANFs, offering a sustainable approach for producing proteins suitable for diverse food products, including plant-based alternatives.

Exploration of the Diversity of Vicine and Convicine Derivatives in Faba Bean (Vicia faba L.) Cultivars: Insights from LC-MS/MS Spectra

While numerous Fabaceae seeds are a good nutritional source of high-quality protein, the use of some species is hampered by toxic effects caused by exposure to metabolites that accumulate in the seeds. One such species is the faba or broad bean (Vicia faba L.), which accumulates vicine and convicine. These two glycoalkaloids cause favism, the breakdown of red blood cells in persons with a glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase deficiency. Because this is the most common enzyme deficiency worldwide, faba bean breeding efforts have focused on developing cultivars with low levels of these alkaloids. Consequently, quantification methods have been developed; however, they quantify vicine and convicine only and not the derivatives of these compounds that potentially generate the same bio-active molecules. Based on the recognition of previously unknown (con)vicine-containing compounds, we screened the fragmentation spectra of LC-MS/MS data from five faba bean cultivars using the characteristic fragments generated by (con)vicine. This resulted in the recognition of more than a hundred derivatives, of which 89 were tentatively identified. (Con)vicine was mainly derivatized through the addition of sugars, hydroxycinnamic acids, and dicarboxylic acids, with a group of compounds composed of two (con)vicine residues linked by dicarboxyl fatty acids. In general, the abundance profiles of the different derivatives in the five cultivars mimicked that of vicine and convicine, but some showed a derivative-specific profile. The description of the (con)vicine diversity will impact the interpretation of future studies on the biosynthesis of (con)vicine, and the content in potentially bio-active alkaloids in faba beans may be higher than that represented by the quantification of vicine and convicine alone.

Effect of Lactic Acid Bacteria on the Level of Antinutrients in Pulses: A Case Study of a Fermented Faba Bean-Oat Product

The importance of cereals and pulses in the diet is widely recognized, and consumers are seeking for ways to balance their diet with plant-based options. However, the presence of antinutritional factors reduces their nutritional value by decreasing the bioavailability of proteins and minerals. This study's aim was to select microbes and fermentation conditions to affect the nutritional value, taste, and safety of products. Single lactic acid bacteria (LAB) strains that reduce the levels of antinutrients in faba bean and pea were utilized in the selection of microbes for two starter mixtures. They were studied in fermentations of a faba bean-oat mixture at two temperatures for 24, 48, and 72 h. The levels of antinutrients, including galacto-oligosaccharides and pyrimidine glycosides (vicine and convicine), were determined. Furthermore, a sensory evaluation of the fermented product was conducted. Fermentations with selected single strains and microbial mixtures showed a significant reduction in the content of antinutrients, and vicine and convicine decreased by up to 99.7% and 96.1%, respectively. Similarly, the oligosaccharides were almost completely degraded. Selected LAB mixtures were also shown to affect the product's sensory characteristics. Microbial consortia were shown to perform effectively in the fermentation of protein-rich materials, resulting in products with improved nutritional value and organoleptic properties.

Toward Sourdough Microbiome Data: A Review of Science and Patents

Technological prospecting was performed on documents related to sourdough microbiota using SCOPUS, Web of Science, Google Scholar, Espacenet and Patent Inspiration databases. Scientific articles and patents were analyzed based on three different perspectives: macro (year of publication, country, and institutions), meso (categorization as different taxonomies according to the subject evaluated), and micro (in-depth analysis of the main taxonomies, gathering the documents in subcategories). The main subject addressed in patents was the starter and product preparation, while 58.8% of the scientific publications focused on sourdough starter microbiota (identification and selection of microorganisms). Most patents were granted to companies (45.9%), followed by independent inventors (26.4%) and universities (21.8%). Sourdough products are in the spotlight when the subject is the bakery market; however, a closer integration between academia and industry is needed. Such a collaboration could generate a positive impact on the sourdough market in terms of innovation, providing a bread with a better nutritional and sensory quality for all consumers. Moreover, sourdough creates a new magnitude of flavor and texture in gastronomy, providing new functional products or increasing the quality of traditional ones.

Effect of Lactic Acid Fermentation on Legume Protein Properties, a Review

Legume proteins have a promising future in the food industry due to their nutritional, environmental, and economic benefits. However, their application is still limited due to the presence of antinutritional and allergenic compounds, their poor technological properties, and their unpleasant sensory characteristics. Fermentation has been traditionally applied to counteract these inconveniences. At present, lactic acid fermentation of legumes is attracting the attention of researchers and industry in relation to the development of healthier, tasty, and technologically adapted products. Hence, we aimed to review the literature to shed light on the effect of lactic acid fermentation on legume protein composition and on their nutritional, functional, technological, and sensorial properties. The antimicrobial activity of lactic acid bacteria during legume fermentation was also considered. The heterogenicity of raw material composition (flour, concentrate, and isolate), the diversity of lactic acid bacteria (nutriment requirements, metabolic pathways, and enzyme production), and the numerous possible fermenting conditions (temperature, time, oxygen, and additional nutrients) offer an impressive range of possibilities with regard to fermented legume products. Systematic studies are required in order to determine the specific roles of the different factors. The optimal selection of these criteria will allow one to obtain high-quality fermented legume products. Fermentation is an attractive technology for the development of legume-based products that are able to satisfy consumers’ expectations from a nutritional, functional, technological, and sensory point of view.

Widening the Perspectives for Legume Consumption: The Case of Bioactive Non-nutrients

Legume grains have provided essential nutrients in human diets for centuries, being excellent sources of proteins, carbohydrates, fatty acids, and fibers. They also contain several non-nutrients that historically have been connotated as toxic but that in recent years have been shown to have interesting bioactive properties. The discussion on the role of bioactive non-nutrients is becoming more important due to increasing science-based evidence on their potential antioxidant, hypoglycemic, hypolipidemic, and anticarcinogenic properties. At a time when legume-based products consumption is being strongly promoted by national governments and health authorities, there is a need to clearly define the recommended levels of such non-nutrients in human diets. However, there is insufficient data determining the ideal amount of non-nutrients in legume grains, which will exert the most positive health benefits. This is aligned with insufficient studies that clearly demonstrate if the positive health effects are due to the presence of specific non-nutrients or a result of a dietary balance. In fact, rather than looking directly at the individual food components, most nutritional epidemiology studies relate disease risk with the food and dietary patterns. The purpose of this perspective paper is to explore different types of non-nutrients present in legume grains, discuss the current evidence on their health benefits, and provide awareness for the need for more studies to define a recommended amount of each compound to identify the best approaches, either to enhance or reduce their levels.

Substantial Depletion of Vicine, Levodopa, and Tyramine in a Fava Bean Protein-Based Nutritional Product

A commercial fava bean protein isolate and a liquid nutritional product formulated with it were tested by validated HPLC methods for the favism-associated pyrimidine glycoside vicine, the dopamine precursor levodopa, and the biogenic amine tyramine. The vicine, levodopa, and tyramine concentrations in the protein isolate-306, 13.3, and <0.5 mg/kg, respectively-when expressed on a protein basis-34, 1.5, and <0.06 mg/100 g protein, respectively-were at least 96% lower than the vicine, levodopa, and tyramine (protein-based) concentrations reported for fava beans (≥900, ~200, and ~4 mg/100 g protein, respectively). This was also true for the vicine (13 mg/kg or 22 mg/100 g protein), levodopa (≤0.17 mg/kg or ≤0.3 mg/100 g protein), and tyramine (0.08 mg/kg or 0.14 mg/100 g protein) concentrations in the nutritional product. On the basis of these data, one serving (11 fl. oz.) of the nutritional product would deliver approximately 5 mg of vicine, <1 mg of levodopa, and <0.1 mg of tyramine.

Leuconostoc citreum TR116 as a Microbial Cell Factory to Functionalise High-Protein Faba Bean Ingredients for Bakery Applications

Grain legumes, such as faba beans, have been investigated as promising ingredients to enhance the nutritional value of wheat bread. However, a detrimental effect on technological bread quality was often reported. Furthermore, considerable amounts of antinutritional compounds present in faba beans are a subject of concern. Sourdough-like fermentation can positively affect baking performance and nutritional attributes of faba bean flours. The multifunctional lactic acid bacteria strain Leuconostoc citreum TR116 was employed to ferment two faba bean flours with different protein contents (dehulled flour (DF); high-protein flour (PR)). The strain’s fermentation profile (growth, acidification, carbohydrate metabolism and antifungal phenolic acids) was monitored in both substrates. The fermentates were applied in regular wheat bread by replacing 15% of wheat flour. Water absorption, gluten aggregation behaviour, bread quality characteristics and in vitro starch digestibility were compared to formulations containing unfermented DF and PR and to a control wheat bread. Similar microbial growth, carbohydrate consumption as well as production of lactic and acetic acid were observed in both faba bean ingredients. A less pronounced pH drop as well as a slightly higher amount of antifungal phenolic acids were measured in the PR fermentate. Fermentation caused a striking improvement of the ingredients’ baking performance. GlutoPeak measurements allowed for an association of this observation with an improved gluten aggregation. Given its higher potential to improve protein quality in cereal products, the PR fermentate seemed generally more promising as functional ingredient due to its positive impact on bread quality and only moderately increased starch digestibility in bread.

Baking Optimization as a Strategy to Extend Shelf-Life through the Enhanced Quality and Bioactive Properties of Pulse-Based Snacks

Food processing optimization can enhance the nutrient bioavailability, storage time, and stability of convenience foods. Baking is a heat and mass transfer process with a high impact on the shelf-life of the obtained product; a small variation in the parameters during baking can lead to significant changes in the end baked product, as it significantly affects the food nutrient profile and bioactive compounds. Response surface methodology (RSM) was used for mapping a response surface over a particular region of interest of baking conditions. The combined effect of the two factors (baking temperature and time) on the selected quality and bioactive parameters as dependent factors was evaluated in order to predict the optimal baking conditions which can facilitate the extended shelf-life of the product through maximizing the antioxidant bioactive properties. This design was used to develop models to predict the effect of the temperature and time baking profile and select those conditions where the quality and bioactive parameters reached a balance to obtain pulse snacks with a high quality, enhanced bioactive properties, and thus a longer shelf-life. Simultaneous optimization by the desirability function showed that a maximum temperature of 210 °C and a time of 14 min were the optimum conditions to produce a pulse-based snack with high antioxidant-antihypertensive activity and nutritional quality.