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Gluten: digestibility

by luciano

Gluten which is a compound formed by gliadin and glutenin which is the basis of baked products (bread and other) is not, as such, assimilable by the intestine but must be reduced to the amino acids components or small series (peptides) of them. The reduction occurs by different enzymes such as trypsin in the stomach, pepsin in the small intestine and other enzymes [1]. In normal health the intestine expels the parts of gluten that are not digested because they are too large to be assimilated. The digestibility of gluten is not only, however, dependent on the “strength of the gluten”, that is on the strength of the different types of bonds that “connect” the proteins of gluten but also on the type of enzymes that hydrolyse “break” the gluten and from the environment in which these processes take place. For example, trypsin in the stomach is activated (ie works), only in an acid environment. Furthermore, all digestive enzymes have the possibility of working better if directly in contact with gluten: something that can only occur in laboratory experiments, since these enzymes will have to “work” on in the stomach and intestines a “complex” of foods and not on gluten [2]. Knowledge of the digestibility of gluten is therefore extremely complex being affected by multiple factors, not least the variability of the conditions of the environment where it occurs (stomach and intestine).

The method of preparation of the finished product should not be overlooked. Indeed the digestibility of gluten, and more specifically, of the finished product is greatly influenced by the preparation method and the ingredients used [3]. Among these a primary role is played by the type of flour and the use of sour dough and / or yeasts. Certainly the use of flours that have little and weak * gluten favor the digestive process but a fundamental role is played by the sourdough (better if associated with very limited quantities of brewer’s yeast). The sourdough with its lactobacilli carries out a strong action of hydrolysis (chopping) of the gluten proteins both directly and by activating the proteases of the flour. Many studies and researches have been devoted to this subject, one in particular:

Protein Digestibility of Cereal Products Iris Joye
Department of Food Science, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON N1G 2W1, Canada; ijoye@uoguelph.ca; Tel.: +1-519-824-4120 (ext. 52470). Published: 8 June 2019
“Abstract: Protein digestibility is currently a hot research topic and is of big interest to the food industry. Different scoring methods have been developed to describe protein quality. Cereal protein scores are typically low due to a suboptimal amino acid profile and low protein digestibility. Protein digestibility is a result of both external and internal factors. Examples of external factors are physical inaccessibility due to entrapment in e.g., intact cell structures and the presence of antinutritional factors. The main internal factors are the amino acid sequence of the proteins and protein folding and crosslinking. Processing of food is generally designed to increase the overall digestibility through affecting these external and internal factors. However, with proteins, processing may eventually also lead to a decrease in digestibility. In this review, protein digestion and digestibility are discussed with emphasis on the proteins of (pseudo)cereals.”

Gluten HMM subunits importance (update 20-01-2020)

by luciano

Extract from the study: The structure and properties of gluten

“…..omissis. One group of gluten proteins, the HMM subunits of glutenin, is particularly important in conferring high levels of elasticity (i.e. dough strength). These proteins are present in HMM polymers that are stabilized by disulphide bonds and are considered to form the ‘elastic backbone’ of gluten. However, the glutamine-rich repetitive sequences that comprise the central parts of the HMM subunits also form extensive arrays of interchain hydrogen bonds that may contribute to the elastic properties via a ‘loop and train*’ mechanism. Genetic engineering can be used to manipulate the amount and composition of the HMM subunits, leading to either increased dough strength or to more drastic changes in gluten structure and properties.

….omissis. These properties are usually described as viscoelasticity, with the balance between the extensibility and elasticity determining the end use quality. For example, highly elastic (‘strong’) doughs are required for breadmaking but more extensible doughs are required for making cakes and biscuits. Omisdsis….The grain proteins determine the viscoelastic properties of dough, in particular, the storage proteins that form a network in the dough called gluten (Schofield 1994). Consequently, the gluten proteins have been widely stud ied over a period in excess of 250 year, in order to determine their structures and properties and to provide a basis for manipulating and improving end use quality.

*

 

…omissis. As a result of the formation of a protein matrix, individual cells of wheat flour contain networks of gluten proteins, which are brought together during dough mix ing. The precise changes that occur in the dough during mixing are still not completely understood, but an increase in dough stiffness occurs that is generally considered to result from ‘optimization’ of protein–protein interactions within the gluten network. In molecular terms, this ‘optimization’ may include some exchange of disulphide bonds as mixing in air, oxygen and nitrogen result in different effects on the sulphydryl and disulphide contents of dough (Tsen & Bushuk 1963; Mecham & Knapp 1966).

I pro e i contro del glutine debole (Oriana Porfiri)

by luciano

“I frumenti “alternativi” idonei per la pastificazione sono il farro dicocco, il grano khorasan o Triticum turanicum e popolazioni locali di grano duro come le saragolle, i grani antichi siciliani e vecchie varietà come il Senatore Cappelli. Questi frumenti sono stati “scelti” dagli agricoltori nel corso dei secoli per la loro adattabilità ambientale e la resa produttiva. La selezione in funzione della qualità di trasformazione (qualità tecnologica) è storia recente, degli ultimi 40-50 anni, nei quali la selezione operata dai costitutori vegetali è andata in direzione di aumentare il contenuto proteico e la quantità di glutine, accrescere la tenacità del glutine, ridurre il contenuto di amido, elevare la resa molitoria. Pertanto, nell’ambito dei grani “alternativi” è frequente individuare varietà con una quantità di glutine estratto più bassa rispetto a quelle moderne e, soprattutto, di scarsa tenacità (struttura del glutine più debole), di facile scomposizione, quindi più digeribile.

La pasta fatta con queste varietà di frumento

La pasta fatta con queste varietà di frumento hanno il pregio di essere adatte a coloro che soffrono di gluten sensitivity (sensibilità al glutine non celiaca) o vogliono mangiare “leggero”, ma per essere di qualità e avere tenuta alla cottura ha bisogno di un processo di pastificazione particolare. Tutto deve essere più lento: l’impasto, l’estrusione e l’essicazione. Inoltre, è impossibile stabilire una ricetta di lavorazione standardizzabile e buona per tutti: ogni prodotto, ogni raccolto, ogni località di provenienza della materia prima richiedono un aggiustamento dei parametri. Questi grani hanno molta variabilità e il pastificio deve costantemente correggere il tiro a misura delle caratteristiche qualitativo/tecnologiche, della quantità di proteine e di glutine dei grani di quell’anno. Sulla qualità della pasta influisce anche un terzo parametro, la quantità di amido presente, in particolare la frazione “resistente”, che è quella non digeribile e che ha un comportamento simile alle fibre, quindi contribuisce ad abbassare l’indice glicemico della pasta.”

a cura di Oriana Porfiri

agronoma ed esperta di cereli

Fonte: Notizie Pasta. Grani siciliani, pasta integrale, glutine debole e micotossine: 4 dilemmi affrontati con gli esperti 23 Ago. 2019, 01:00 | a cura di Gambero Rosso