Effects of ball‐milling on the glass transition of wheat flour constituents

BACKGROUND: Starch and gluten, the major components of wheat flour, greatly influence the structural characteristics of food products made with wheat flour. The effects of ball‐milling on the change in the semicrystalline structure of starch granules to the amorphous state have been reported. However, the effects of ball‐milling of native wheat flour on physicochemical changes in wheat flour constituents have not been elucidated. Therefore in this study the effects of ball‐milling on the glass transition of wheat flour constituents were investigated. RESULTS: Crude gluten, non‐gluten proteins and separated starch were obtained from wheat flour ball‐milled for 0–10 h, and the glass transition temperature (T_g) of these constituents was evaluated. The T_g of all wheat flour constituents decreased with increasing ball‐milling time. Sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis revealed that changes in band position and intensity did not occur for gluten but did occur for non‐gluten proteins. X‐ray diffraction revealed decreased crystallinity and greater plasticisation by water in separated starch as the ball‐milling time was prolonged. CONCLUSION: The results showed that the ball‐milling process decreased the T_g of wheat flour constituents as a function of milling time. The decrease in T_g was probably due to changes in conformation of protein subunits in gluten and depolymerisation of the non‐gluten protein fraction. The information obtained here about the physical alteration of wheat flour constituents may enhance the ability to successfully use ball‐milled wheat flour in food applications. Copyright © 2008 Society of Chemical Industry     

Characteristics of Aspergillus niger xylanases produced on rice husk and wheat bran in submerged culture and solid‐state fermentation for an applicability proposal

Xylanolytic rich filtrates were obtained by A. niger sp in both submerged and solid‐state culture using rice husk or wheat bran as the only carbon source. Filtrates obtained on rice husk showed the highest activities (~6500 and 5200 U g^?1, respectively). Independent of carbon source, these filtrates were very stable in an acidic pH range (4–7) and mild temperatures, with high half‐life time values (more than 7 h at 50 °C) in the corresponding inactivation kinetic models. Also the effect of different metallic ions and denaturing substances was verified finding that these enzymes are not metaloproteins, and metals as Hg²⁺ and Pb²⁺ caused the greatest loss of xylanolytic activity (not higher than 30%). Xylanases produced by this A. niger strain showed important features that make them potential candidates for applications on human and livestock food industries.