Effect of sourdough fermentation and baking process severity on bioactive fiber compounds in immature and ripe wheat flour bread

The dietary fiber complex of cereal whole grain is an important source of host beneficial molecules, such as: beta-glucans, fructans, resistant starch and arabinoxylans. The bioavailability of these compounds from whole grain products is generally dependent to different physiological and technological issues, likewise: genotype and maturation stage, dough preparation, fermentation options and baking process. This study regards the production of breads from cereal whole grains, taking into account two wheat genotypes harvested at mature and immature stages and processed through different conditions, varying temperature, time of baking and fermentation parameters. The aim is to highlight the different impact of these aspects on the amount and the bioavailability of the aforementioned four bioactive molecules. Our results showed that the best product, in terms of content of beneficial compounds, is that obtained from the flour of advanced maturation stage processed with brewer's yeast fermentation. Given the great interest in finding better technological processes to increase the daily dietary fiber intake, our findings could be very useful for the food industry to design the exact formulation and best process for the increase of bio-active molecules concentration in cereal whole grains products.