Dados do Trabalho

Título

Evaluation of the amino acid profiles of Andean lupine (Lupinus mutabilis) and potato (Solanum tuberosum) compared to corn (Zea mays) flour

Introdução

Andean lupin and potato are essential dietary constituents, especially in developing countries like Peru. They are rarely used in gluten-free products (GFP), which are mostly made from cereals. On the other hand, yellow flint corn, imported in largely quantities by Peru, is a common staple for producing GFP, it is poor in lysine but has higher levels of methionine and cysteine compared to tubers and legumes. Blending corn with potato and lupin may enhance the use of these latter crops and improve the nutritional quality of GFP. However, little information is available about the comparison of the amino acids of these flours at the same working conditions.

Material e Métodos

Corn flour (CF), potato flour (PF) and lupin flour (LF) were treated to be analyzed by HPLC and determine the total amino acid (TAA), limiting amino acid (LAA), and amino acid score (AAS), based on the reference protein for an adult human (FAO, 2013).

Resultados e Discussão

This study revealed that TAA content was the highest for LF (47.7%), followed by PF (7.8%) and CF (5.6%). The most abundant essential amino acid was leucine for CF and LF, as well as lysine for PF and LF. Each protein was limited by a particular amino acid such as lysine, leucine and methionine+cysteine for CF, PF and LF, respectively, with AAS between 55.3-86.9%. Regarding amino acid quality, LF and PF were richer in lysine than corn flour, and their limiting amino acids were higher in CF, as well as the limiting amino acid in CF that was greater in LF and PF. Regarding amino acid quantity, LF and PF presented the highest amounts.

Conclusão

We conclude that Andean lupin and potato flours have different amino acid profiles compared to corn flour, potentially complementing corn flour. We suggest that the combined use of the flours could result in a better amino acid profile, providing an improved amino acid profile compared to each flour alone. This could enhance the nutritional quality of GFP, making them more sustainable.