Exploring Structure-Function-Digestion Relationships to Create Novel Plant-based Health Food Products

消费者对天然、简单食品的偏好正在推动植物性成分的扩张。此外，消费者越来越意识到健康饮食和全球食品可持续性的重要性。谷物、块茎、豆类和一些淀粉类水果是人类饮食中重要的植物性粮食作物;它们是蛋白质、碳水化合物和膳食纤维等常量营养素以及维生素和矿物质等微量营养素的良好来源。然而，当水热加工（例如，煮熟、煮沸等）时，它们的大量淀粉含量比其他非淀粉作物更有助于血糖峰值，这让许多人不敢食用它们。此外，在某些情况下，这些淀粉类食物仍然是食物浪费的最大来源。关于这些作物的复杂细胞结构以及它们如何受到食品加工技术的影响，在知识方面存在着明显的差距，这阻止了制造公司将其纳入健康食品。因此，谷物、块茎、豆类和一些淀粉类水果在创造增值保健食品方面具有巨大的未开发潜力。拟议的研究计划将使用一种新的方法来全面探索有前途的植物成分的组成和结构。* 该计划将提供新的见解：（a）植物细胞结构，进而血糖反应，如何受到加工的影响;（B）阻止酶进入/结合的食物组成和微观结构;（c）减缓或阻止淀粉酶作用的淀粉结构特征;（d）高剪切挤出对生产具有目标碳水化合物递送和优质质地的植物基配料的影响。我们将对以下方面有新的认识：1）植物组织细胞成分的自然存在的物理屏障，推断淀粉在常规食品加工后对酶消化的抵抗力; 2）淀粉分子结构-消化关系，导致水热处理的淀粉食品富含结构驱动的缓慢消化淀粉; 3）淀粉的分子剪切断裂和通过高剪切挤出形成生物模拟细胞结构元件，用于生产具有靶向碳水化合物递送的植物基成分; 4）制造富含结构驱动的可缓慢消化的淀粉的食品的方法。这种机械的理解将为基于科学的工程解决方案提供基础，以解决新出现的植物性食品质量问题。我们将为加拿大的农业食品部门提供新的工艺和技术，使植物性面粉的生产成为满足消费者日益增长的需求的新型营养和美味健康食品产品线的基础。这项研究计划将对HQP培训以及加拿大和国际科学和工业界产生重大影响。

A shift in consumer preferences towards natural, simple foods, is driving the expansion of plant-based ingredients. Moreover, consumers are increasingly more aware about the importance of healthy eating and global food sustainability. Cereals, tubers, legumes and some starchy fruits are important plant-based food crops in the human diet; they are a good source of macronutrients such as protein, carbohydrates and dietary fibers, as well as micronutrients such as vitamins and minerals. However, their large starch content contributes to blood sugar spikes more than other non-starchy crops when hydrothermally processed (e.g. cooked, boiled, etc.), which deters many people from consuming them. Furthermore, in some cases, these starchy foods remain some of the largest sources of food waste. There is a noticeable gap in knowledge around the complex cellular structures of these crops and how they are affected by food processing techniques, preventing their incorporation into health food products by manufacturing companies. Thus, cereals, tubers, legumes and some starchy fruits represent a massive untapped potential for creating value-added health food products. The proposed research program will use a novel approach to holistically explore the composition and structure of promising plant-based ingredients. ***This program will provide new insights into: (a) how plant cell structure, and in turn glycemic response, is affected by processing; (b) the food composition and microstructure that halts enzyme access/binding; (c) the starch structural features that slow down or prevent -amylase action and; (d) the effect of high shear extrusion for producing plant-based ingredients with targeted carbohydrate delivery and premium texture. We will develop a new understanding of the: 1) the naturally occurring physical barriers of the plant-based tissues' cellular components that infer resistance of starch to enzyme digestion after conventional food processing; 2) starch molecular structure-digestion relationships that result in hydrothermally treated starchy foods rich in structurally-driven slowly digestible starch; 3) molecular shear scission of starch and the formation of bio-mimicking cell structural elements through high shear extrusion for producing plant-based ingredients with targeted carbohydrate delivery; 4) ways to manufacture foods rich in structurally-driven slowly digestible starch. This mechanistic understanding will provide the foundation for science-based engineering solutions to emerging plant-based food quality issues. We will provide Canada's agri-food sector with novel processes and technologies that will enable the creation of plant-based flours that will form the basis of novel nutritious and highly palatable health food product lines that satisfy growing consumer demands. This research program will have a significant impact on HQP training, as well as the Canadian and international scientific and industrial communities.