INCAP studies of vegetable proteins for human consumption.

This article describes the efforts of the Institute of Nutrition of Central America and Panama (INCAP) to develop a relatively low-cost vegetable protein mixture suitable as a complementary food for infants and young children. As it turned out, the resulting product became popular with older children and adults, and its superior nutritional benefits were widely recognized by the population. This effort led to broader studies by INCAP of the nutritional quality of vegetable protein mixtures, including raw materials, processing to convert them into human-grade products, product formulation, and commercialization.

Effect of lime and wood ash on the nixtamalization of maize and tortilla chemical and nutritional characteristics.

The objective of the study was to obtain information on the chemical composition, functional properties, sensory quality and protein value of tortillas made from the nixtamalization of maize using either lime or wood ashes. The Ca, K, Mg, Fe, and Zn content of lime and wood ashes showed lime to be high in Ca content while wood ash contained more K and about 71% of the Ca content of lime. Both contained relatively high levels of Mg, Fe and Zn, but more so in the wood ashes.

[The oil, fatty acid and squalene content of varieties of raw and processed amaranth grain].

The oil, fatty acid and squalene content of varieties of raw and processed grain amaranth. Six amaranth grain varieties were processed to yield a nixtamalized flour, one cooked in water, one expanded, a malted one and a laminate samples after a thermic treatment. The chemical values of the raw samples contained from 14.

[Use of cowpea (Vigna unguiculata) in mixtures with common beans (Phaseolus vulgaris) for the development of new food products].

The objective of the study was to evaluate cowpeas (V. unguiculata) as a partial substitute of common beans (P. vulgaris) as a paste or as cooked dry flour.

Preparation and characterization of protein isolate from fresh and hardened beans (Phaseolus vulgaris L.).

The purpose of the present work was to determine the effect of accelerated hardening of beans on yield and physicochemical, functional, and toxicological properties. Protein isolates were obtained from fresh and hardened common beans (Phaseolusvulgaris L.).

G protein-coupled receptor systems and their lipid environment in health disorders during aging.

Cells, tissues and organs undergo phenotypic changes and deteriorate as they age. Cell growth arrest and hyporesponsiveness to extrinsic stimuli are all hallmarks of senescent cells. Most such external stimuli received by a cell are processed by two different cell membrane systems: receptor tyrosine kinases (RTKs) and G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs).

[Effect of different cooking treatments of Mucuna beans on its L-Dopa content].

The main limiting factor in the consumption by humans of the velvet bean (Mucuna) is its relatively high content of L-Dihydroxyphenylalanine (L-Dopa), with levels as high as 9%. Conventional cooking methods used to transform raw velvet bean into an edible product are not sufficiently effective in reducing the levels of L-Dopa in adequate processing time. In this report, Mucuna beans were cooked by microwave, utilizing vapor and in water solutions at pH 3, 6, 7, 9 and 11.

[Development of bakery products for greater adult consumption based on wheat and rice flour].

The present investigation was developed as a contribution to Guatemalan's elderly food and nutrition. Its main objective was to evaluate the chemical, nutritional and sensory quality of bread prepared from the partial substitution of wheat flour with rice flour. Wheat flour substitutions with rice flour in the order of 15, 20, 30, 40, 50 and 60% were evaluated.

Effect of processing conditions on phytic acid, calcium, iron, and zinc contents of lime-cooked maize.

Tortillas are made by cooking maize in a lime solution during variable times and temperatures, steeping the grain for up to 12 h, washing and grinding it to a fine dough, and cooking portions as flat cakes for up to 6 min. The effects of the main processing steps on the chemical composition, nutritive value, and functional and physicochemical characteristics have been areas of research. The present work evaluates the effect of lime concentration (0, 1.

[Protein fraction distribution in milling and screened physical fractions of grain amaranth].

The purpose of the study was to establish the protein distribution based on solubility in physical fractions of amaranth flour, in particular between the flour from the germ and that from the perisperm. The protein distribution was obtained applying a series of solvents sequentially utilized in the classical methodology of Osborne & Mendel. The sample of A.