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Cereal germ
Reproductive part of a grass seed
Reproductive part of a grass seed
The germ of a cereal grain is the part that develops into a plant;{{cite book | access-date = 9 July 2009 it is the seed embryo.{{cite book | access-date = 9 July 2009}} Along with bran, germ is often a by-product of the milling{{cite book | access-date = 9 July 2009}} that produces refined grain products. Cereal grains and their components, such as wheat germ oil,{{cite book | access-date = 9 July 2009}} rice bran oil, and maize bran,{{cite book | access-date = 9 July 2009}} may be used as a source from which vegetable oil is extracted, or used directly as a food ingredient. The germ is retained as an integral part of whole-grain foods.{{cite book | url-access = registration | access-date = 9 July 2009}} Non-whole grain methods of milling are intended to isolate the endosperm, which is ground into flour, with removal of both the husk (bran) and the germ. Removal of bran produces a flour with a white rather than a brown color and eliminates fiber. The germ is rich in polyunsaturated fats (which have a tendency to oxidize and become rancid on storage) and so germ removal improves the storage qualities of flour.{{cite book
Wheat germ
Wheat germ or wheatgerm is a concentrated source of several essential nutrients, including vitamin E, folate (folic acid), phosphorus, thiamin, zinc, and magnesium, as well as essential fatty acids and fatty alcohols.{{cite book | access-date = 9 July 2009}}{{cite web | access-date = 9 July 2009}} It is a good source of fiber.{{cite book | author-link = Andrew Weil | url-access = registration | access-date = 9 July 2009}} White bread is made using flour that has had the germ and bran removed.{{cite book | access-date = 9 July 2009}} Wheat germ can be added to protein shakes, casseroles, muffins, pancakes, cereals, yogurt, smoothies, cookies, and other goods.{{cite web | access-date = 9 July 2009 | archive-date = 24 July 2011 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110724144835/http://whfoods.org/genpage.php?pfriendly=1&tname=dailytip&dbid=87 | url-status = dead Wheat germ can become rancid if not properly stored in a refrigerator or freezer{{cite book | access-date = 9 July 2009}} and away from sunlight. Some manufacturers prevent rancidity by storing wheat germ in vacuum-sealed glass containers, or by placing an oxygen-absorbing sachet inside air-tight packaging.
Other uses
In molecular biology, wheat germ extract is used to carry out cell-free in vitro translation experiments: the plant embryo contains all the macromolecular components necessary for translating mRNA into proteins, but relatively low levels of its own mRNA.
Wheat germ is also useful in biochemistry since it contains lectins that bind strongly to certain glycoproteins; therefore, it can be used to isolate such proteins.
Notes
References
- Ericksen, Marlene. (15 June 2000). "Healing with Aromatherapy". [[McGraw-Hill]].
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20110310121822/http://www.ambion.com/techlib/basics/translation/index.html In Vitro Translation: The Basics], Ambion
- (2002-11-12). "A cell-free protein synthesis system for high-throughput proteomics". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
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