Corn Tassel: A New Source of Phytochemicals and Antioxidant Potential for Value-Added Product Development in the Agro-Industry

Abstract

Corn tassel is a byproduct from hybrid corn seed production. It is also a new source of phytochemicals, including compounds with antioxidant activity. The aim of this study was to evaluate the phytochemical content and antioxidant potential of different corn tassel development stages. A 4 × 8 factorial experiment consisting of four tassel development stages and eight commercial corn varieties was carried out with a randomized complete block design with three replications. Data were collected for tassel weight, concentration and yield of total phenolics, total anthocyanin concentration, total carotenoid concentration, and antioxidant activity, as determined by the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl(DPPH•) radical scavenging assay and Trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity(TEAC) assays. Corn varieties and tassel developmental stages showed significant variations (p ≤ 0.01) in all parameters. P4546 presented the best variety for the total phenolic content (15.8 mg GAE/g DW sample), whereas Hibrix3 had the highest phenolic yield (6.78 kg GAE/ha). KGW1, a purple waxy variety, had the highest anthocyanin content (1528.0 µg CGE/g DW sample), anthocyanin yield (753.0 g CGE/ha), carotenoid content (74.9 µg/g DW sample), and carotenoid yield (53.7 g/ha). P4546 had the highest antioxidant activity: 92.4% for DPPH• and 76.1 µmol TE/g DW sample for the TEAC assay, respectively. The most appropriate time for tassel harvest to ensure the production of phytochemicals with high antioxidant activity should be from the 1st day of pollen shed until 50% of pollen shed. Phytochemicals and antioxidants that are extracted from corn tassel can be used as a functional food supplement, as natural pharmaceuticals, and in cosmetic products.

Variability in Anthocyanins, Phenolic Compounds and Antioxidant Capacity in the Tassels of Collected Waxy Corn Germplasm

“…Fifteen uniform whole tassels at the first day of the pollen shed stage were harvested from each plot. This stage was the optimal time for the tassel harvest for the phytochemicals production according to Duangpapeng et al [3]. The tassels were cut into small pieces, dipped in liquid nitrogen to stop enzymatic activity and freeze-dried using a freeze dryer (Gamma 2−16 LSCplus, Martin Christ Gefriertrocknungsanlagen GmbH, Osterode am Harz, Germany).…”

“…ceratina) are consumed as a vegetable in many Asian countries [1]. In Thailand, purple waxy corn is considered a special corn type because it is rich in phenolic compounds and anthocyanin in the kernels, cobs, silks and husks [2], as well as in the tassel [3]. Colored waxy corn is a good source of phytochemicals that are beneficial to health [4][5][6].…”

Phenolic Profile and Antioxidant, Anticholinergic, and Antibacterial Properties of Corn Tassel

“…Corn kernels are an important material of the corn plant and are used as a raw material in starch and flour making, production of animal feed, and industrial products such as bioethanol, enzymes, vitamins, organic acids, etc. Other important waste products derived from the corn plant are corn tassel, kernel, and corncobs, which are good sources of bioactive compounds such as flavonoids, phenolic compounds, anthocyanins, proteins, vitamins, minerals, carotenoids, and volatile compounds [ 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 ].…”

“…An average of 25–30 g of the fresh tassel is obtained from a corn plant, and its weight after drying is 8–9 g at most. The weight of tassels in corn depended on the structure of tassels in different varieties, especially the number of tassel branches, the length of anthers and tassels, and other factors [ 5 ].…”

Tasselyzer, a machine learning method to quantify maize anther exertion, based on PlantCV

“…A limitation of Tasselyzer is that it is optimized to distinguish anthers that are yellow or pink in hue, which are distinct in color from the green branches. However, Tasselyzer could not effectively process tassel images when the colors of anthers and branches were too similar, for example, when assessing anthers with a green hue (Duangpapeng et al ., 2018); therefore, an alternative method will be required in these cases. In the future, a highly automated imaging and analysis system could be developed to evaluate individual maize male fertility based on Tasselyzer to meet the requirements of larger-scale field research.…”