Antioxidant properties and potential mechanisms of hydrolyzed proteins and peptides from cereals

Abstract

Cereals like wheat, rice, corn, barley, rye, oat, and millet are staple foods in many regions around the world and contribute to more than half of human energy requirements. Scientific publications contain evidence showing that apart from energy, the regular consumption of whole grains is useful for the prevention of many chronic diseases associated with oxidative stress. Biological activities have mostly been attributed to the presence of glucans and polyphenols. In recent years however, food proteins have been investigated as sources of peptides that can exert biological functions, promote health and prevent oxidative stress. This review focuses on the role of hydrolyzed proteins and peptides with antioxidant properties in various models and their mechanisms which include hydrogen or electron transfer, metal chelating, and regulation of enzymes involved in the oxidation-reduction process.

Characteristics of Potential Protein Nutraceuticals of Plant Origin with Antioxidant Activity

“…Proteins are amino acid biopolymers that serve various functions in the human body and are among the main nutrients for the bioevaluation for which various indices, including PER, AD, TD, NPU, PDCAAS, DIAAS [15][16][17][18][19], are used. These biopolymers are a source of peptides with a broad spectrum of biological impact on the human body [5,[9][10][11][12][13][14][27][28][29][30]. BAPs precursors can also include wheat, rice, barley, rye, oat and sorghum proteins (Tables 1-5) [27][28][29][30].…”

“…Cereals are a staple food for people in many regions worldwide, and their carbohydrate content allows them to satisfy approx. 50% of daily human energy needs [30]. Cereal grains also contain proteins whose contents account for 6-20% of the grains [30][31][32][33].…”

“…50% of daily human energy needs [30]. Cereal grains also contain proteins whose contents account for 6-20% of the grains [30][31][32][33]. These include albumins (soluble in water), globulins (soluble in salt solutions), prolamins (soluble in alcoholic solutions) and glutelins (soluble in acids or bases) [33,34].…”

“…The dominant protein groups found in cereal grains are prolamins and globulins. Prolamins found in wheat, rye, barley and sorghum account for 30-50% of all proteins and, depending on the type of cereal in which they occur, are referred to as gliadins, secalins, hordeins and kafirins, respectively [30,[34][35][36]. In oat and rice grains, prolamins account for approx.…”

“…In oat and rice grains, prolamins account for approx. 4-15% [30][31][32]. Cereal proteins are characterised by a lower nutritional value compared to other food proteins.…”