Fixation of color in grain and physical, technological and nutraceutical characteristics in corn Elotes Occidentales

Abstract

The Elotes Occidentales corn race has grains with anthocyanin pigmentation that have antioxidant capacity and are used to make pozole. The objective was to determine the effect of fixing and standardizing the color of the grain, and the evaluation of physical characteristics, technological variables and nutraceutical composition in corn of a population of the Elotes Occidentales race. The crop was established in the experimental field of the University Center of Biological and Agricultural Sciences of the University of Guadalajara, in Zapopan, Jalisco, Mexico, after selection by visual appreciation of color of the grain in three intensities: clear, intermediate and dark, in the spring-summer 2013, fall-winter 2013-2014 and 2014-2015 cycles in which they self-pollinated. Grains of uniform color were selected and planted in spring-summer 2015 and autumn-winter 2016-2017, obtaining the final population by recombination in fraternal crosses by color. It is evaluated the physical characteristics, technological variables (for elaboration of pozole) and nutraceuticals (total anthocyanins, total soluble phenols and antioxidant capacity) in grain of the original and final populations, by means of a completely random design. The color of the grain of the final population presented uniformity and increased its intensity in the three subpopulations; however, in terms of grain size, anthocyanin content (27.41% difference) and antioxidant capacity, they were statistically lower (p≤ 0.05) than the original population. The physical and technological variables were appropriate for producing pozole. With the technique used to fix the color, no gain was obtained due to the effect of color on nutraceutical characteristics.