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Plant Source Foods
Published in Chuong Pham-Huy, Bruno Pham Huy, Food and Lifestyle in Health and Disease, 2022
Chuong Pham-Huy, Bruno Pham Huy
Corn or maize grain (Zea mays, family: Poaceae or Gramineae), is considered a staple food in many parts of the world. Maize grain (kernel) is an edible and nutritive part of the plant. It is the third leading crop of the world, after wheat and rice, in providing nutrients to humans and animals. Maize plant is used for animal feed, while maize silk or maize stigma (Maidis stigmata) is reserved for medicinal purposes (45–46). Maize is also used for production of starch, oil, alcoholic beverages, nutraceuticals, food sweeteners and recently, biofuel. Corn flour is used to make flat breads and other dishes for different populations in the world.
An Overview of Important Endemic Plants and Their Products in Iran
Published in Raymond Cooper, Jeffrey John Deakin, Natural Products of Silk Road Plants, 2020
Zea mays (Figure 7.34), corn, is an annual plant growing up to 2 m at a fast rate. The species is monoecious. It is suitable to grow in light (sandy), medium (loamy), and heavy (clay) soils and prefers well-drained soil. It is suitable to grow in the soil with acid and neutral pH. It cannot grow in the shade. It prefers moist soil. A decoction of the leaves and roots is used in the treatment of strangury, dysuria, and gravel. The corn silks are cholagogue, demulcent, diuretic, lithontriptic, mildly stimulant, and vasodilator. They also act to reduce blood sugar levels and so are used in the treatment of diabetes mellitus as well as cystitis, gonorrhea, gout, etc. A decoction of the cob is used in the treatment of nose bleeds and menorrhagia. The seed is diuretic and a mild stimulant. It is a good emollient poultice for ulcers, swellings, and rheumatic pains and is widely used in the treatment of cancer, tumors, and warts. The plant is said to have anticancer properties and is experimentally hypoglycemic and hypotensive. In industry, it is used for making paper, animal and bird food (Zargari, 2014; Mozaffarian, 2011; Plant for a Future; Bhaigyabati et al., 2011).
Nutritional Attributes of Cereal Grains And Legumes as Functional Food: A Review
Published in Megh R. Goyal, Durgesh Nandini Chauhan, Plant- and Marine-Based Phytochemicals for Human Health, 2018
Vikas Dadwal, Himani Agrawal, Shriya Bhatt, Robin Joshi, Mahesh Gupta
Zea mays is the richest source of macronutrients such as potassium, having diuretic properties. Corn silk fraction is also enriched with various phenols, maizenic acid, gum, and oils. Thus, it is used as a medicinal source for the treatment of nephrites, diuresis, hypoglycemia, nephrotoxicity, and as an anti-inflammatory and anti-fatigue agent. Zea mays is a rich source of vitamin B complex, which supports the functioning of brain, hair, heart, skin, and digestion.138 Presence of vitamin E has been reported to circumvent the development of atherosclerosis.108 Lecithin is a major fatty acid component in Zea mays; and when bound to sugar molecules it leads to the inhibition of some virus activity. Similarly, many other bioactive molecules including resistant starch in Zea mays helps in lowering cholesterol, atherosclerosis, and the risk of cervical cancer.104 It has also been reported that it may possess prebiotic potential.156 Carotenoids present in Zea mays may reduce melanoma cancer cells, gastric cancer cells, and leukemia cells.62, 114 Bioactive fatty acid molecules are reported to be effective against bone loss, anti-inflammatory, and antidiabetic effect.11 Anthocyanins have been reported to be antidiabetic, anti-inflammatory, lipid-lowering, antiatherogenic, and inhibit platelet aggregation.138
Sustainable production of biomass and industrially important secondary metabolites in cell cultures of selfheal (Prunella vulgaris L.) elicited by silver and gold nanoparticles
Published in Artificial Cells, Nanomedicine, and Biotechnology, 2019
Hina Fazal, Bilal Haider Abbasi, Nisar Ahmad, Mohammad Ali, Syed Shujait Ali, Abbas Khan, Dong-Qing Wei
Application of nanoparticles significantly influenced the establishment of cell cultures in P. vulgaris. The literature is still limited that know the effect of nanoparticles on the progression and development of different plant tissues and cells. The effect of nanoparticles not only restricted to growth regulation but also prominently affected the pathways of secondary metabolism. Here, the combination of nanotechnology and plant tissue culture produce promising results in suspended cells of P. vulgaris that further need insight view of molecular mechanism. In some plant species, the application of nanoparticles produced positive results but their accumulation in plant tissues and its subsequent release to the environment are still contradictory [2]. The effect of nanoparticles varies with plant species, with age and type of tissues selected for applications [33]. Previously, in plant species like Hordeum vulgare and Linum usitatissimum, AgNPs negatively affected the process of seed germination [5,34]. Contrarily, the growth of Zea mays and Phaseolus vulgaris were enhanced using the same NPs [35,36]. Herewith, the synergistic application of Ag and Au NPs along with NAA showed positive effects on cell culture development. Moreover, the same combinations during phases of growth kinetics (lag, log, stationary and decline) enhanced fresh and dry biomass biosynthesis. On 30–42 days of cell cultures, biomass accumulation as compared to control was found maximum on media with variable ratios of nanoparticles and NAA.
Overview on zein protein: a promising pharmaceutical excipient in drug delivery systems and tissue engineering
Published in Expert Opinion on Drug Delivery, 2018
Zea maysL. or corn is one of the most important crops for all populations throughout the world. It comprises high nutritive values due to the existence of several components including the proteins. It has from 6% to 12% protein based on its dry weight. Seventy-five percent of this protein lies in the tissues of endosperm while the 25% remaining are divided between the germ and barn. Corn protein is differentiated into four types, namely, albumins, globulins, glutelin, and zein [8]. John Gorham named zein in 1821. He was able to isolate and identify it in Zea on the same year [22]. It is mainly in the endosperm and believed to belong to prolamines protein class having a molecular weight of about 40 kDa [23]. However, a more recent study showed that α and δ zein are the only ones considered as prolamine proteins while β and γ zein are considered glutelin [24]. Although it has a low nutritive value as it lacks essential amino acids as lysine and tryptophan, zein comprises in its content several peptides that differ in solubility and molecular weights, and it is rich in glutamic acid, leucine, proline, and alanine [25]. The presence of these large molecular weight peptides renders it hydrophobic [26]. Pure zein is odorless, tasteless solid, water insoluble, alcohol soluble, biologically biodegradable, and most of all is edible [27]. These properties allowed for the diverse utility of zein in several industrial fields.
Assessment of natural variability in leaf morphological and physiological traits in maize inbreds and their related hybrids during early vegetative growth
Published in Egyptian Journal of Basic and Applied Sciences, 2019
Farag Ibraheem, Eman M. El-Ghareeb
Maize (Zea mays L.) is an important economic crop worldwide [1]. It is also an excellent C4 experimental system to combine physiological and agronomic studies for many reasons; it has one of the highest photosynthetic rates with a very efficient ability to fix CO2 into carbohydrates, biomass, and yield. It also has a high capacity to uptake, assimilate and remobilize nitrogenous and carbon intermediates, traits that significantly impact growth and yield [2]. Further, a wide genetic diversity in growth, development and grain yield has been reported in maize germplasm and such variability has been the driving force for searching and developing new genotypes with favorable traits [3,4].