Brazilian Maize Landraces Silks as Source of Lutein: An Important Carotenoid in the Prevention of Age-Related Macular Degeneration

Abstract

The carotenoid composition of the silk tissue of Zea mays (L.) has not been investigated despite its large occurrence in maize grains. For the purpose of evaluating maize silk as a source of carotenoids, samples from eight landraces developed and cultivated in Southern Brazil were assayed. The silk samples were harvested from individual plants through the fourth and seventh day after they emerged, frozen in liquid N 2 , and lyophilized. The carotenoids were extracted with a MeOH/toluene solution (1:1, v/v), 30 min, and saponified (15% KOH, 12 h, 40˚C). The RP-HPLC-UVvisible analysis revealed lutein as the main carotenoid (88.75%) in maize silks, with a wide range of contents (dry weight), i.e. 39.11 g·g −1 (Palha Roxa 18) to 176.12 g·g −1 (Língua de Papagaio) among the studied genotypes.Smaller amounts of trans-β-carotene, -carotene, and zeaxanthin were also detected. The results revealed that in parallel to the claimed high genetic variability of maize landraces, a quite variable carotenoidic composition of silk tissue seems to occur in the germoplasm cultivated in Southern Brazil. Taking into account the usage of lutein for the prevention of several pathologies, especially the age related macular degeneration, some maize landraces (e.g. Língua de Papagaio and Rosado) might be interesting sources of a lutein-rich extract that could add value to an underutilized biomass.

Origem, Domesticação E Dispersão Do Milho Nas Américas

“…moleculares (Matsuoka et al, 2002;Vigouroux et al, 2008;van Heerwaarden et al, 2011;Silva et al, 2015;; iii) etnobotânicas (Bellon e Brush, 1994;Louette et al, 1997;Louette e Smale, 2000;; iv) bioquímicas (Kuhnen et al, 2009(Kuhnen et al, , 2010a(Kuhnen et al, ,b, 2011(Kuhnen et al, , 2012Uarrota et al 2011a,b); e v) citogenéticas (McClintock et al, 1981;Poggio et al, 1998;Realini et al, 2018). Em Cuzapala, no México, as variedades brancas estavam associadas aos usos gastronômicos, as variedades roxas foram consideradas mais doces e, geralmente, consumidas assadas na fase leitosa do grão, enquanto que as variedades amarelas associaramse, principalmente, à alimentação animal (Louette et al, 1997).…”

Diversidade de variedades locais de milho-pipoca conservada in situ on farm em Santa Catarina: um germoplasma regional de valor real e potencial desconhecido

“…A diversidade de cores observada é um aspecto interessante do ponto de vista do melhoramento genético. O potencial nutricional das variedades locais de milho comum do EOSC vem sendo demonstrado por diversos estudos (Kuhnen et al, 2011;Kuhnen et al, 2012;Uarrota et al, 2013) que associam as cores ao perfil metabólico e à qualidade química do grão. Žilić et al (2012) também avaliaram o perfil metabólico de 10 genótipos de milho, incluindo duas variedades locais de milho-pipoca.…”

Exploring feasible sources for lutein production: food by-products and supercritical fluid extraction, a reasonable combination

“…Leafy green and colored vegetables such as cabbage, broccoli, lettuce, parsley, peas, spinach, watercress, and maize are the main food sources of lutein (El-raey et al 2013;Kuhnen 2012). Nevertheless, as vegetable intake in the modern diet does not meet the nutritional or pharmacological dose of lutein, it has popularized the use of dietary supplements.…”