RESUMO
Eragrostis teff is an Ethiopian native grass plant (Poaceae or Gramineae family) whose importance as a crop grain has increased in recent years. The aim of this study is to analyze the nutritional composition of its seeds and the mutagenic/antimutagenic activity of the hydroalcoholic extract of the seed flour. Chemical elements (colloquially known as minerals) were determined using Particle-Induced X-ray Emission (PIXE) and Flame Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy (FAAS), while the content of amino acids (aminogram) and fatty acids (profile of fatty acids) were quantified by HPLC. Mutagenic activities were tested using Salmonella/microsome assay. Mutagens doxorubicin, 4-nitroquinolin N-oxide, methylmethanosulphonate, and aflatoxin B-1 were used in Salmonella typhimurium TA98 and TA100 strains to assess antimutagenic activities. The major elements observed were K, P, S, Mg, and Ca. Almost all essential amino acids were observed and the predominance of unsaturated fatty acids in the total oil content of 2.72% (w/w) is also noted, including the two essential fatty acids alpha-linolenic acid (an omega-3 fatty acid) and linoleic acid (an omega-6 fatty acid). Hydroalcoholic extract of E. teff seed flour showed antimutagenic activity, protecting against frameshift and base pair substitution mutations. These findings provide valuable information for further development of healthier foods that can be produced with increasing yields and minimal environmental impact.
RESUMO
Knowledge of the profile of fatty acids, including the profile of long chain fatty acids, is an important parameter for many areas like human health, food sciences, and the study of gene expression in plant tissues, among others. Moreover, very long chain fatty acids occur at low concentrations in many biological samples. The 3[4(bromomethyl)phenyl]7(diethylamino)coumarin (MPACBr) reagent is an improved version of the coumarin bromomethyl-type reagents, used for the fluorescent labeling of carboxylic acids in a variety of sample types. Derivatization reactions are always a matter of concern in routine analyses, as they are seen as a time demanding step and a source of errors in analytical chemistry. MPACBr is studied in the present work, including the robustness of its derivatization reaction, the stability of its derivatives, the limits of its detection and the repeatability of its results. An optimized version of its protocol was applied to determine the content and profiles of both medium and long chain fatty acids in eight samples of oils and fats. It was shown that the proposed derivatization reaction is a reliable, robust, fast and convenient method for the analysis of these compounds.