Optimization of the composition of the powdered cereal sprouts mixtures

Abstract

Sprouts of cereals have received significant attention as functional food due to their nutritional and functional value. Consumption of sprouts has become increasingly popular among people interested in improving and maintaining their health status by changing dietary habits. Cereal grains contain several classes of phytochemicals, i.e. phenolics, chlorophylls, and carotenoids. However, their nutritional and chemical profile is altered and improved during germination. The purpose of this study was to find the best ratio of the powdered wheat (WS), oat (OS) and barley (BS) sprouts for designing the cereal sprout mixture (CSM) with the highest total phenolic content (TPh) and antioxidant capacity (AC), using Simplex-Centroid experimental design and response surface methodology (RSM). Single- and multi-response optimizations showed that OS did not contribute to TPh or AC values of CSM and, therefore, was not included in any of the compositions of the optimized CSM. Single-response optimizations showed that the highest TPh was found for CSM containing 82% BS and 18% WS, while the best AC was found for pure BS. The predicted ratio of cereal sprout powders in CSM obtained by multi-response optimization was: 96% BS and 4% WS. This mixture possessed the highest predicted TPh and AC (372.32 mg GAE/100 g, 549.99 μmol TE/100 g, respectively), which was confirmed to be in accordance with the experimental values. Based on the results obtained in this study, a designed CSM is proposed as a convenient ingredient of functional food products, dietary supplements and nutraceuticals.