Hungarian researchers increase the fiber content of wheat by breeding

The summary recalls that MGI employees have been working for almost 10 years on the production of fiber-enriched cereals by breeding, as fiber plays an important role in maintaining human health. While the insoluble part of them promotes intestinal motility and the binding of carcinogens, among other things, the soluble fraction reduces cholesterol levels and glucose absorption in the small intestine, thereby indirectly contributing to the reduction of cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes. Some fiber substances (e.g., resistant starch) selectively feed beneficial colon bacteria, stimulate their growth, i.e., act as prebiotics. The research team has launched experiments to increase the fiber content of wheat in two different approaches. One approach aimed to increase the proportion of so-called resistant starch resistant to human digestion in wheat, while the other approach was to increase the amount of cell wall-forming polysaccharides, most notably arabinoxylans. It was ...