Amylolytic activity of brown rice and black rice during germination

Abstract

Enzymatic activity in germinated cereal grains is important for the saccharification of starch materials. This study was conducted to investigate the amylolytic activities of germinating brown rice and black rice that have different amylose contents. Brown rice and black rice were steeped at room temperature for 24 h and germinated at 20 and 30°C for 1, 2, and 3 days. α- And β-Amylase activities in normal brown rice increased very slightly during the 3-day germination period, but the enzymatic activities were slightly higher in low-amylose (waxy type) brown rice. Diastatic power (DP), a measure of starch-saccharifying enzyme, was higher in the germinating brown rice with low amylose than in those with normal amylose content. α- And β-Amylase activities in black rice increased gradually during germination, and DP of low-amylose black rice appeared to be higher than that of normal brown rice. Amylase activities in brown rice and black rice germinated at 30°C were higher than those germinated at 20°C. Compared to brown rice, the overall amylolytic activity of germinated black rice was observed to be higher than that of brown rice.