2007 Annual Report 1a.Objectives (from AD-416) Improve the functional properties of wheat, oat, and barley seed proteins by investigating isolation techniques, protein modification, and protein blends. Specific objectives include: (1) Develop cereal protein materials having specific and desirable characteristics, and determine the origin of the alterations occurring during the currently employed grain protein isolation methods. Initiate new protein materials with maximum functional properties. Determine the effect of commercially existing isolation methods on the functional properties of wheat, barley, and oat proteins; (2) Establish new and fundamental information on the physical, rheological, and mechanical properties of seed proteins that is of vital importance in developing new uses and new markets for seed proteins; and (3) Develop protein-based polymer blends from renewable resources to expand their utilization. The newly developed products will serve as alternatives to petroleum-based polymers. 1b.Approach (from AD-416) Functional properties of isolated seed proteins will be evaluated and enhanced by chemical and enzymatic modification. Proteins will be characterized by field-flow fractionation, high performance liquid chromatography, capillary electrophoresis, thermal analysis, and ultracentrifugation. Rheological characterization of native and processed proteins will be made using a stress-controlled rheometer, a Diffusing Wave Spectrometer, and a newly developed Multiple Particle Tracking System. Blends of proteins with other polymers will be formulated for specific applications and their phase behavior, aggregation, and mechanical properties characterized. 3.Progress Report Significant progress has been made on the isolation and modification of barley and oats proteins. The modified protein will be used in producing low-fat high-protein spoonable salad dressing and mayonnaise. These products will be introduced as healthy products with a reasonable consumer acceptance. Three different biodegradable composites were prepared using biodegradable poly lactic acid as the principle component and, milkweed, wheat gluten, sugar beet, or apple fiber as fillers. The composites showed promising results and good potential for commercial application. The viscoelastic behavior of wheat protein isolates and corn protein Zein suspensions has been determined using Multiple-Particle Tracking (MPT) technique. 4.Accomplishments A. Developing protein-isolation and modification methods (1) Different approaches were taken to develop new uses for wheat, barley, and oats proteins, (2) Unmodified vital wheat gluten protein as well as enzymatically crosslinked and chemically modified (acetylated) barley proteins were used in synthetic and biopolymer blends to develop new products with unique thermo-mechanical properties, (3) New techniques for testing the thermo-mechanical properties of these blends were introduced, (4) Ultra-filtration-di-filtration method used to isolate water soluble proteins from native and acetylated barley flour. The isolated protein was characterized and the rheological properties were determined. This accomplishment falls under National Program 306, Quality and Utilization of Agricultural Products, Component 2 - New Processes, New Uses, and Value-Added Foods and Biobased Products. B. Expanding protein utilization in different food products focused on targeting consumers with low carb diet The consumption of high-protein content products was the trend in the past several years. This project has contributed to this trend by developing products with high protein content which is within the scope of expanding wheat protein utilization. This contribution came as complementary to the effort of the food industry by developing high protein bread and cookies to satisfy the needs of consumers wishing to reduce their body weight. The developed formulations can be easily utilized by commercial bakeries. This accomplishment falls under National Program 306, Quality and Utilization of Agricultural Products, Component 2 - New Processes, New Uses, and Value-Added Foods and Biobased Products. C. Utilization of proteins in non-food products, particularly in biodegradable materials Chemically and enzymatically crosslinked vital wheat protein was developed and blended with Poly (Lactic acid). The conditions of the reaction, such as ionic strength, time, and enzyme concentration were maximized. The thermal properties of the blend and the level of miscibility of the two polymers were reported. The rheological properties of PROLITE 200, a wheat protein isolate developed by ADM, were determined for potential application in food products with a wide range of acidity such as baked, canned and frozen products. However, wheat gluten has some limitation in usage. PROLITE 200 offers some “relaxed” vitality compared to traditional wheat gluten and can be used as a protein additive to provide the proper texture in some high protein products such as baked, extruded, and fried foods. In this work, we investigated basic rheological properties of PROLITE 200 suspensions. The results provided more insight about wheat protein isolate PROLITE 200, which will be helpful for developing more and new applications in food products. This accomplishment falls under National Program 306, Quality and Utilization of Agricultural Products, Component 2 - New Processes, New Uses, and Value-Added Foods and Biobased Products. 5.Significant Activities that Support Special Target Populations None. 6.Technology Transfer Number of active CRADAs and MTAs 1 Review Publications Xu, J., Mohamed, A., Hojillaevangelist, M.P., Sessa, D.J. 2006. Viscoelastic properties of lupin proteins produced by ultrafiltration-diafiltration. Journal of the American Oil Chemists' Society. 83(6)553-558. Xu, J., Bietz, J.A., Carriere, C.J. 2006. The viscoelastic properties of wheat gliadin and glutenin suspensions. Food Chemistry. 101(3):1025-1030. Xu, J., Chang, T., Inglett, G.E., Kim, S., Tseng, Y., Wirtz, D. 2006. Micro-heterogeneity and micro-rheological properties of high-viscosity oat beta-glucan solutions. Food Chemistry. 103(4):1192-1198. Biswas, A., Shogren, R.L., Kim, S., Willett, J.L. 2006. Rapid preparation of starch maleate half-esters. Carbohydrate Polymers. 64(3):484-487. Mohamed, A., Gordon, S.H., Biresaw, G. 2007. Polycaprolactone/polystyrene bioblends characterized by thermogravimetry, modulated differential scanning calorimetry and infrared photoacoustic spectroscopy. Polymer Degradation and Stability. 92:1177-1185.