Kinetics of free and glycosylated B6 vitamers,thiamin and riboflavin during germination of pea seeds

The effect of germination on the free and glycosylated B₆ vitamers (pyridoxine, pyridoxal, pyridoxamine and glycosylated pyridoxine), thiamin and riboflavin content in pea seed (Pisum sativum L, var Esla) was investigated. In raw peas, the total vitamin B₆ content (sum of all vitamers expressed as pyridoxine) was 2.183 mg kg⁻¹ DM. Pyridoxine was found to be the predominant B₆ vitamer, while only a little amount of glycosylated pyridoxine, the vitamer with the lowest boiavailability, was observed. Thiamin and riboflavin content in raw peas was found to be 7.614 and 2.110 mg kg ⁻¹ DM, respectively. After 6 days of germination, carried out at 20°C, in the dark and with daily rinsing, a significant increase of the total vitamin B₆ content, mainly due to the increase of glycosylated pyridoxine, was observed. The content of pyridoxal and riboflavin increased in peas 7.5 and 2 times, respectively, whereas pyridoxine, pyridoxamine and thiamin decreased by 83, 24 and 25%, respectively, at the end of the experiment. Results obtained for these vitamins during pea germination were fitted to modelling curves in order to predict vitamin content for different germination periods. © 1999 Society of Chemical Industry