REVIEW: Oat and Rye β‐Glucan: Properties and Function
Peter J. Wood
Cereal Chemistry
Abstract
ABSTRACT Over the years, the β‐glucan of oats and barley has been the subject of study either because of the importance of the cholesterol‐lowering potential to health claims (FDA 1997, 2005) or, in the case of barley, because of the role of β‐glucan and β‐glucan‐rich endosperm cell walls in malting and brewing. β‐Glucan is also present in rye and in much lesser amounts in wheat. The most striking difference in these latter two sources is the difficulty in extractability; alkali rather than water is required for significant release from the cell walls. This review will discuss physicochemical properties of oat and rye β‐glucan and, where information allows, relate these to physiological effects. Viscosity, or more generally rheology, plays a central role in discussions of cereal β‐glucan functionality and physiological effects and will be the focus of this review.
Extracted Claims
4 claims extracted from this paper into the knowledge graph
β‐glucan play a role malting and brewing
“or, in the case of barley, because of the role of β‐glucan and β‐glucan‐rich endosperm cell walls in malting and brewing.”
β‐glucan lower cholesterol
“Over the years, the β‐glucan of oats and barley has been the subject of study either because of the importance of the cholesterol‐lowering potential to health claims (FDA 1997, 2005)”
β‐glucan present rye and wheat
“β‐Glucan is also present in rye and in much lesser amounts in wheat. The most striking difference in these latter two sources is the difficulty in extractability; alkali rather than water is required ...”