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Fusarium head blight (FHB) is one of the most serious diseases of small-grain cereals worldwide, resulting in yield reduction and an accumulation of the mycotoxin deoxynivalenol (DON) in grain. Weather conditions are known to have a significant effect on the ability of fusaria to infect cereals and produce toxins. In the past 10 years, severe outbreaks of FHB, and grain DON contamination exceeding the EU health safety limits, have occurred in countries in the Baltic Sea region. In this study, extensive data from field trials in Sweden, Poland and Lithuania were analysed to identify the most crucial weather variables for the ability of Fusarium to produce DON. Models were developed for the prediction of DON contamination levels in harvested grain exceeding 200 µg kg -1 for oats, spring barley and spring wheat in Sweden and winter wheat in Poland, and 1250 µg kg -1 for spring wheat in Lithuania. These models were able to predict high DON levels with an accuracy of 70-81%. Relative humidity (RH) and precipitation (PREC) were identified as the weather factors with the greatest influence on DON accumulation in grain, with high RH and PREC around flowering and later in grain development and ripening correlated with high DON levels. High temperatures during grain development and senescence reduced the risk of DON accumulation. The performance of the models, based only on weather variables, was relatively accurate. In future studies, it might be of interest to determine whether inclusion of variables such as pre-crop, agronomic factors and crop resistance to FHB could further improve the performance of the models.

Avenanthramides are phenolic compounds found only in oats, and are of interest due to suggested bioactivities, including anti-inflammatory effects and induction of apoptosis. The objective of this work was to optimise a high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method for analysis of avenanthramides in food, and analyse the avenanthramide content in 45 oat fractions and products. The optimised HPLC method was based on triplicate extraction of 100 mg sample with 1 ml 80% ethanol in phosphate buffer (pH 2.8) and used gallacetophenone as an internal standard. Avenalumic acid-derived avenanthramide homologues 2f d and 2p d were also present, making up to 20% of the total avenanthramides detected in oats. The amounts of avenanthramides detected in oat products was 2-82 µg/g. It was estimated that mean avenanthramide intake among oat consumers ranges from 0.3 to 2.1 mg/day, considerably lower than the amount used in studies that have investigated biological effects of avenanthramides in humans., (Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Purpose: The satiating effect of animal vs plant proteins remains unknown. The present study examined the effects of breakfasts containing animal proteins [milk (AP)], a blend of plant proteins [oat, pea and potato (VP)] or 50:50 mixture of the two (MP) compared with a carbohydrate-rich meal (CHO) on appetite, energy intake (EI) and metabolic measures., Methods: A total of 28 males [mean age 27.4 (±SD 4.2) years, BMI 23.4 (±2.1) kg/m 2 ] consumed three isoenergetic (1674 kJ) rice puddings matched for energy density and macronutrient content as breakfast (25% E from protein) in a single-blind, randomised, cross over design. Appetite ratings and blood samples were collected and assessed at baseline and every 30 and 60 min, respectively, until an ad libitum test meal was served 3.5 h later. Free-living appetite was recorded hourly and EI in weighed food records for the remainder of the day., Results: No differences in subjective appetite ratings were observed after consumption of the AP, VP and MP. Furthermore, there were no differences between the AP, VP, MP and CHO breakfasts in ad libitum EI and self-reported EI during the remainder of the day. Although insulin metabolism was not affected, CHO induced a higher glucose response (P = 0.001) and total amino acids concentration was in the order of AP = MP > VP > CHO breakfast (P = 0.001)., Conclusion: Manipulating the protein source of foods consumed as breakfast, elicited comparable effects on appetite and EI at both laboratory and free-living environment in healthy men.

Barley husks, rye bran, and a fiber residue from oat milk production were processed by heat pretreatment, various separation steps, and treatment with an endoxylanase in order to improve the prebiotic potential of these cereal byproducts. Metabolic functions were intended to improve along with improved microbial activity. The products obtained were included in a high-fat mouse diet so that all diets contained 5% dietary fiber. In addition, high-fat and low-fat controls as well as partially hydrolyzed guar gum were included in the study. The soluble fiber product obtained from rye bran caused a significant increase in the bifidobacteria (log copies of 16S rRNA genes; median (25-75 percentile): 6.38 (6.04-6.66) and 7.47 (7.30-7.74), respectively; p < 0.001) in parallel with a tendency of increased production of propionic acid and indications of improved metabolic function compared with high-fat fed control mice. The oat-derived product caused an increase in the pool of cecal propionic (from 0.62 ± 0.12 to 0.94 ± 0.08) and butyric acid (from 0.38 ± 0.04 to 0.60 ± 0.04) compared with the high-fat control, and it caused a significant increase in lactobacilli (log copies of 16S rRNA genes; median (25-75 percentile): 6.83 (6.65-7.53) and 8.04 (7.86-8.33), respectively; p < 0.01) in the cecal mucosa. However, no changes in measured metabolic parameters were observed by either oat or barley products.

The concentrations of avenanthramides (AVAs), hydroxycinnamic acids (HCAs), a sucrose-linked truxinic acid (TASE), and certain agronomic parameters were analyzed in organically and conventionally grown oats. Three cultivars of oats (i.e. Freja, Sang, and Matilda) were grown according to standards for both conventional and organic farming in Sweden, from 1998 to 2000. Two levels of nitrogen (N) and three replicates were included. Overall, there were significant differences between years, cultivars, and N rate for AVA concentration in the grains, but there were no differences in concentration as a consequence of the conventional or organic cropping system used. The AVA content was higher in the samples grown in 2000, particularly in the cultivar Matilda, and was negatively affected by higher N rates. The HCAs showed cultivar and year differences, but were not influenced by N rates or the cropping system. The HCA content was highest in Matilda, and was significantly lower in samples grown in 1999. The concentration of TASE differed only between years, and was about 100% higher in samples from 1999, compared with samples from 1998 and 2000. The AVA and HCA concentrations were negatively correlated to the yield and specific weight of the grains and positively correlated to the protein content. Conversely, the concentration of TASE was positively correlated to the yield. The specific parameters responsible for the variation in the phenolic compounds are not known, but it seems that factors affecting the yield and/or the specific weight also affect the concentrations of AVAs, HCAs, and TASE in oat grains.

beta-(1-->3),(1-->4)-D-Glucan (beta-glucan) was extracted from 93 Swedish and 41 American oat samples using hot water containing CaCl(2) and thermostable alpha-amylase. The samples showed a large variation in both the content of extractable beta-glucan (0.76-3.68%) and the average molecular weight ((1.25-1.78) x 10(6) g mol(-1)). An analysis of the variance of beta-glucan content and the molecular weight of Swedish oat samples grown in 2000 and 2001 was done with cultivar and harvest year as factors. It showed that the extractable beta-glucan content was a heritable trait whereas molecular weight depended more on environmental factors. The American oat samples had a higher average content of extractable beta-glucan (2.24%) and a somewhat higher average molecular weight (1.58 x 10(6) g mol(-1)) than the Swedish oat samples (1.43% and 1.49 x 10(6) g mol(-1)).