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The Open Nutraceuticals Journal, 2011, 4, 163-171 163
1876-3960/11 2011 Bentham Open
Open Access
Biochemical Evaluation of Fermented White Maize (Zea Mays L.) Blended
with Scarlet Runner Bean (Phaseolus Coccineus L.) Flour
M. O. Aremua,*, O. Olaofeb, S. S. Audua and D. M. Ijalanaa
aDepartment of Chemistry, Nasarawa State University, PMB 1022, Keffi, Nigeria
bDepartment of Chemistry, University of Ado-Ekiti, PMB 5363, Ado-Ekiti, Nigeria
Abstract: Fermented maize product, ogi, is a popular weaning and breakfast cereal in west coasts of Africa. In the
study proximate, mineral and amino acid compositions of ogi from a composite mixture of white maize (Zea mays L.) and
scarlet runner bean (Phaseolus coccineus L.) flours were evaluated using standard processing techniques. Maize ogi was
substituted with scarlet runner bean flour at ratios of 90:10, 80:20, 70:30 and 60:40 maize : scarlet runner bean; with
100% maize ogi flour as control. The results showed that protein, ash and crude fibre contents increased progressively
with increased scarlet runner bean flour substitution, reaching 192.0%, 187.5% and 170.0% dry weight, respectively at
60:40 ratio. The macro minerals such as Mg, Na and P also recorded increase in concentrations in the fortified products.
Harmful heavy metals like Pb and Cd were below detection limit of the AAS. The total essential amino acids (TEAA)
ranged from 20.37 – 27.59 g/100g crude protein or from 41.40 – 43.10% of the total amino acid while the limiting amino
acid (LAA) was Met + Cys. It was also found that fortified samples had progressive increase in the concentration levels of
total amino acid (TAA), total essential amino acid (TEAA), essential aromatic amino acid (EArAA) and total sulphur
amino acid (TSAA). Generally, the present study indicates that at 40% scarlet runner bean seed substitution of the
ogi mass, the quality attributes of ogi can be maintained, with higher nutrient content.
Keywords: Maize ogi, scarlet runner bean, nutritional quality.
INTRODUCTION
Scientifically, it has been proved that breast milk is the
perfect food for the infant during the first six months of life.
It contains all the nutrients and immunological factors
an infant requires to maintain optimal health and growth.
Furthermore, breast milk also protects infants against the
two leading causes of infant mortality, upper respiratory
infections and diarrhea [1]. However, at the age of six
months and above when the child’s birth weight is expected
to have doubled, breast milk is no longer sufficient to
meet the nutritional needs of the growing infant. Nutritious
complementary foods are therefore introduced, also known
as weaning foods which typically covers the period from six
to twenty-four months of age in most developing countries
[2]. But nowadays due to the reduced consumption of breast
milk, important nutrients such as proteins, zinc, iron and
B-vitamins are likely to be deficient in the contemporary
diet of the affected infants [3]. If such a development is not
well handled during this crucial growth period, it can lead to
under-nutrition. For instance, poor feeding practices and/or
shortfall in food intake have been identified as the most
important direct factors responsible for malnutrition and
illness amongst children in Nigeria [4].
As in most other developing countries the high cost of
fortified nutritious a complementary food is always, if not
*Address correspondence to this author at the Department of Chemistry,
Nasarawa State University, PMB 1022 , Keffi, Nigeria; Tel: +23480656116 58;
E-mail: lekearemu@gmail.com
prohibitive, beyond the reach of most Nigerian families.
Such families often depend on inadequately processed tradi-
tional foods consisting mainly of un-supplemented cereal
porridges made from maize, sorghum and millet. In view of
this, appropriate processing and blending of locally available
food commodities have been carried out and researched into
by a number of researchers [5-8]. This approach requires
knowledge about the nutritive values of a variety of local
food commodities, indigenous to the affected communities.
A number of cereals and legumes that are readily available in
Nigeria have been found to have nutrient potentials that
could complement one another if properly processed and
blended [9-11]. Therefore, it is imperative that efforts to
formulate composite blends and scientific studies are carried
out to ascertain the nutritive adequacy of these locally avail-
able blends (cereal and legumes) for possible use as com-
plementary foods, especially by the rural and poor urban
mothers during weaning period.
Fermented maize product, ogi, is a popular weaning and
breakfast cereal in sub-Saharan Africa [6]. Ogi is tradition-
ally prepared by natural fermentation (steep ing maize grains
in water for 2 – 4 days at room temperature), followed by
wet milling, sieving and souring slurry (2 – 3 days rest at
room temperature). The periods of fermentation and souring
determine the degree of sourness (measured by titratable
acidity) acids, to a large extent, the nutrient status of ogi [7].
Scarlet runner bean (Phaseolus coccineus L.) is an uncon-
ventional legume which was found to have contained nutri-
tionally useful quantities of most of the essential amino acids
164 The Open Nutraceuticals Journal, 2011, Volume 4 Aremu et al.
and adequate amounts of the limiting amino acids [12] and
also good sources of essential minerals [13]. The objective of
the present study was to assess proximate, mineral and
amino acid compositions of fermented white maize (Zea
mays L.) ogi blended with scarlet runner bean (Phaseolus
coccineus L.) flour with a view to providing preliminary
information towards utilization of this legume in various
food applications in Africa.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Samples Collection and Preparation
Scarlet runner bean (Phaseolus coccin eus L.) and with
maize grains (Zea mays L.) used for the study were pur-
chased from Garaku market in Kokona local government of
Nasarawa State, Nigeria. The scarlet runner bean seed flour
and maize ogi were produced in the laboratory as outlined in
Fig. (1). Wet milling was done using laboratory Kenwood
blender (Mini-Processor Model A90LD, Thom Emi Ken-
wood Small Appliance Ltd., Hampshire, UK) while milling
of the flours was done using Hammer Mill, to pass through a
0.25mm screen. The dehulled parboiled scarlet runner bean
seed flour was added to maize flour at substitution levels of
10, 20, 30 and 40%, respectively; 100% maize flour served
as control. The blended flours were then packaged in mois-
ture-proof, air-tight polyethylene containers and kept at 4oC
prior to analyses.
Proximate Analyses
The moisture, ash, ether extract, crude fibre, crude pro-
tein (N x 6.25) and carbohydrate (by difference) were deter-
mined in accordance with AOAC methods [14]. All proxi-
mate analyses of the sample flours were out in triplicate and
reported in %. All chemicals were of Analar grade.
Mineral Analysis
Sodium and potassium were determined using a flame
photometer (Model 405, Corning UK). Phosphorus was de-
termined by Vanadomolybdate colourimetric method [15].
All other metals were determined by Atomic Absorption
Spectrophotometer (Perkin–Elmer model 403, Norwalk CT).
The minerals were reported in mg/100g sample.
Amino Acid Analysis
The amino acids were quantitatively measured by proce-
dure described by Spackman [16], using automatic amino
acid analyzer (Technicon TSM Sequential Multisample Ana-
lyzer). Sample was hydrolyzed for determination of all
amino acids except trytophan in consistent boiling hydro-
chloric acid for 22h under a nitrogen flux.
Estimation of Isoelectric Point (pI) Quality of Dietary
Protein and Predicted Protein Efficiency Ratio (P-PER)
The predicted isoelectric point was evaluated as follows
[17]:
pIm =pIiXi
i=1
n=1
Where: pIm is the isoelectric point of the mixture of
amino acids, pIi is the isoelectric point of the ith amino acid s
in the mixture, and Xi is the mass or mole fraction of the
amino acids in the mixture.
Fig. (1). Processing methods adapted for the production of (a) Scarlet runner bean and (b) Maize ogi flours.
Biochemical Evaluation of Fermented White Maize (Zea Mays L.) The Open Nutraceuticals Journal, 2011, Volume 4 165
The quality of dietary protein was measured by finding
the ratio of available amino acids in the flour sample with
need expressed as a ratio [18]. Amino acid score (AAS) was
then estimated by applying the following formula [19]:
AAS =
mg of a min oacidinlg of test protein
mg of a min oacidinlg of reference protein x100
1
The predicted protein efficiency ratio (P-PER) of forti-
fied flour was calculated from their amino acid composition
based on the equation developed by Alsmeyer et al. [20]:
P-PER = –0.468 + 0.454 (Leu) –0.105 (Tyr)
Calculations and Statistical Analyses
Sodium/potassium (Na/K) and calcium/phosphorus
(Ca/P) ratios were calculated for the samples [21]. Standard
deviations were calculated using MS Excel Spread Sheet
from the three determinations done on each sample for
the proximate composition and was used as the measure of
dispersion.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
The proximate composition of maize ogi fortified with
scarlet runner bean flour is presented in Table 1. Increased
scarlet runner bean flour substitution gave progressively
higher protein, crude fibre and ash contents of the product
with lower fat and carbohydrate contents. It has been re-
ported [7] that the traditional method of ogi processing is
usually accompanied by severe nutrient losses, which aggra-
vates the poor nutritional quality of normal dent corn. There
was progressive decrease in moisture content of the fortifica-
tion product; this could mean a reduction in pre-disposition
to shelf spoilage [23]. Though, there was progressive de-
crease in the calculated metabolizable energy values of scar-
let runner bean substituted maize ogi flours but difference in
each product not significant (P > 0.05). Scarlet runner bean
is known to have containing energy concentration favourably
compare to cereal [10]. Despite the effect of fortification
processes the coefficient of variation (CV%) levels were
relatively close with hot spot at 45.8 in ash content whereas
others ranged from 1.1 in energy to 32.8 in crude fibre.
Differences in the mean proximate composition between
maize ogi and different fortification products are presented
in Table 2. The parameters that increased progressively with
different fortification products were ash, crude fibre and
crude protein with percentage range values of 20.0 –
187.5%, 40.0 – 170.0% and 47.1 – 192.0%, respectively
while the ones that decreased were moisture, crude fat, car-
bohydrate, calculated fatty acid and calculated metabolizable
energy with range values of 8.6 – 25.5%, 7.3 – 22.0%, 3.8 –
17.7%, 7.3 – 21.95 and 0.5 – 3.1%, respectively. The CV%
was variously varied with a range of 27.4 – 60 Table 2.
The mineral composition of the weaning diets is pre-
sented in Table 3. The macro-minerals such as P, Mg and Na
recorded increased concentrations in the maize ogi with in-
creased scarlet runner bean flour substitutions while Ca and
K decreased in concentrations with increased substitution
ratios. However, Ca maintain the same concentration of
108.10 mg/100g at 90:10 substitution ratio with 100% maize
ogi (control). Magnesium is an important element in connec-
tion with circulatory diseases such as ischemic heart disease
and calcium metabolism in bone [24]. Calcium in conjunc-
tion with phosphorus, magnesium, vitamin A, C and D, chlo-
rine and protein are all involved in bone formation [25]. Cal-
cium is also important in blood clotting, muscle contraction
and in certain enzymes in metabolic processes [25]. Phos-
phorus assists calcium in many body reactions although it
also has independent function.
Modern diets which are rich in animal proteins and phos-
phorus may promote the loss of calcium in the urine [26].
Among the micro-minerals, only Zn and Fe had a decrease in
concentrations at 90:10 & 80:20 and 90:10 substitution ra-
tios, respectively while others (Cr, Co, Cu and Mn) increased
in concentrations. Nickel was only detected at 80:20 of
Table 1. Mean Proximate Composition (%) of Maize Ogi Fortified with Scarlet Runner Bean Flour
Parameter 100%
Maize Ogi
Maize : SRB
90:10
Maize : SRB
80:20
Maize : SRB
70:30
Maize : SRB
60:40
Mean SD CV%
Moisture 4.43 (0.10)a 4.05 (0.50) 3.80 (0.20) 3.55 (2.05) 3.30 (0.10) 3.83 0.39 10.2
Ash 0.80 (0.50) 0.96 (0.20) 1.41 (0.10) 1.75 (2.50) 2.30 (0.20) 1.44 0.66 45.8
Crude fat 4.10 (0.20) 3.80 (0.50) 3.70 (0.50) 3.50 (0.01) 3.20 (0.20) 3.66 0.30 8.2
Crude fibre 1.00 (0.00) 1.40 (1.20) 1.90 (0.20) 2.30 (0.05) 2.70 (0.20) 1.86 0.61 32.8
Crude protein 7.00 (0.50) 10.30 (0.20) 13.67 (0.15) 16.11 (0.10) 20.44 (1.00) 13.50 3.79 28.1
Carbohydrateb 82.67 (0.50) 79.49 (0.10) 75.52 (2.10) 72.79 (0.30) 68.09 (2.10) 75.70 5.10 6.7
Fatty acidc 3.28 (0.20) 3.04 (0.50) 2.96 (0.50) 2.80 (5.05) 2.56 (1.20) 2.93 0.20 6.8
Energyd 1676.09(5.10) 1667.03(6.50) 1653.13(2.35) 1640.80(2.50) 1623.41(4.50) 1652.09 18.7 1.1
aNumber in parentheses are standard deviations of triplicate determinations
bCarbohydrate percent calculated as the (100 – total of other components)
cCalculated fatty acids (0.8 x crude fat)
dCalculated metabolizable energy (kJ 100g–1-) (protein x 17 + fat x 37 + carbohydrate x 17)
SRB = scarlet runner bean
166 The Open Nutraceuticals Journal, 2011, Volume 4 Aremu et al.
maize ogi to scarlet runner bean flour substitution ratio. It is
interesting to note that harmful minerals such as Cd and Pb
were not at detectable range of AAS for any of the samples
Table 3. Cadmium and lead even at low concentration are
known to be toxic and have no known function in biochemi-
cal process. Lead can impair the nervous system and affect
foetus, infants and children resulting in lowering of intelli-
gent quotient (IQ) even at its lowest dose [27]. Coefficient of
variation percent levels of all the min erals were also rela-
tively close with the highest found in Mn (33.8) while the
least was Zn (9.3).
Differences in the mean mineral composition between
100% maize ogi (control) and different scarlet runner bean
flour substitutions showed that CV% ranged from 20.0 in Zn
to 72.3 in K Table 4. Overall, it could be concluded that sub-
stitution of maize with scarlet runner bean in the production
of ogi yields fortified products with improved valuable
mineral content. This is also substantiated by the increased
Table 2. Differences in the Mean Proximate Compo sition Between Maize Ogi and Different Fortified Products
Parameter I – II I – III I – IV I – V Mean SD CV%
Moisture 0.38 (8.6%) 0.63 (14.2%) 0.88 (19.9%) 1.13 (25.5%) 0.76 0.38 50.0
Ash –0.16 (–20.0%) –0.61 (–76.3%) –0.95 (–118.7%) –1.5 (–187.5%) 0.81 0.49 60.5
Crude fat 0.30 (7.3%) 0.4 (9.8%) 0.60 (14.6%) 0.9 (22.0%) 0.55 0.22 40.0
Crude fibre –0.40 (–40.0%) 0.90 (90.0%) –1.30 (–130.0%) –1.2 (–170.0%) 0.95 0.26 27.4
Crude protein –3.30 (–47.1%) –6.67 (–95.3%) –9.11 (–130.1%) –13.44 (–192.0%) 8.13 3.70 45.5
Carbohydrate 3.10 (3.8%) 7.15 (8.6%) 9.98 (11.9%) 14.62 (17.7%) 8.69 4.19 48.2
Fatty acid 0.24 (7.3%) 0.32 (9.8%) 0.48 (14.6%) 0.72 (21.9%) 0.44 0.18 40.9
Energy kJ. 9.06 (0.5%) 22.96 (1.4%) 35.29 (2.1%) 52.69 (3.1%) 30.0 16.1 53.5
I = 100% maize ogi; II = 90 maize ogi:10 SRB; III = 80 ma ize ogi :20 SRB; IV = 70 maize ogi:30 SRB; V = 60 maize ogi:40 SRB; SRB = scarlet runner bean; SD = standard devia-
tion; CV = coefficient of variation.
Table 3. Mean Mineral Composition (mg/100g) of Maize Ogi Fortified with Scarlet Runner Bean Flour
Mineral I II III IV V Mean SD CV%
Ca 108.10 76.40 79.30 67.53 108.10 87.89 18.96 21.6
Cr 2.56 2.77 4.33 4.74 5.75 4.03 1.21 30.0
Co ND 14.13 16.43 18.30 11.70 12.11 3.50 28.9
Cd ND ND ND ND ND – – –
P 37.89 49.05 37.26 47.15 50.49 44.37 5.65 12.7
Zn 4.93 4.61 4.32 5.47 5.46 4.96 0.46 9.3
Cu ND 2.45 4.26 6.46 8.38 – – –
Mn 0.88 1.16 1.54 1.74 2.39 1.54 0.52 33.8
Ni ND ND 0.06 ND ND – – –
Fe 18.10 16.39 18.68 21.56 21.38 19.22 1.99 10.4
Mg 77.11 170.08 211.11 244.08 231.61 186.80 60.32 32.3
K 21.00 14.80 17.20 20.00 20.00 18.6 2.28 12.3
Na 53.80 53.86 67.50 50.00 68.52 58.74 7.71 13.1
Pb ND ND ND ND ND – – –
Ca/P 2.90 1.60 2.12 1.43 2.14 2.04 0.51 25.0
Na/K 2.56 3.64 3.92 2.50 3.43 3.21 0.57 17.8
ND = not detected; Na/K = sodium to potassium ratio; Ca/P = calcium to phosphorus ratio; SD = standard deviation; CV = coefficient of variation; – = not determined; I = 100%
maize ogi; II = 90 maize ogi:10 SRB; III = 80 maize ogi:20 SRB; IV = 70 maize ogi:30 SRB; V = 60 maize ogi:40 SRB; SRB = scarlet runner bean
Biochemical Evaluation of Fermented White Maize (Zea Mays L.) The Open Nutraceuticals Journal, 2011, Volume 4 167
ash content at all substitution levels Table 1. Some workers
[7, 28] also observed significant increase in ash and mineral
contents in African oil bean – ogi and pawpaw – ogi, respec-
tively. The scarlet runner bean is known to contain apprecia-
ble amounts of important minerals [10, 12], and this is ex-
pected to reflect in any legume – based or supplemented
food product. Food is considered “good” if Ca/P ratio is
above one and “poor” if the ratio is less that 0.5 while Ca/P
ratio above two helps to increase the absorption of calcium
on the small intestine. The results of Ca/P ratios in ogi sam-
ple and fortified products Table 3 were not only good but
also gave an indication that they would help to increase the
absorption of calcium in the small intestine.
Table 3 also shows Na/K ratios of 100% maize ogi and
fortified products. Both Na and K are required to maintain
osmotic balance of body fluid and the pH of the body regu-
late muscle and nerve irritability, control glucose absorption
and enhance normal retention of protein during growth [21].
The Na/K ratio less than one is recommended. Sodium to
potassium ratios in this report ranged from 2.50 to 3.64
mg/100g sample (CV%, 17.8); these values are greater than
one, hence the samples may not have capacity to hinder
blood pressure [21].
Amino acid profile is presented in Table 5. Leucine was
the most concentrated (5.00 to 6.56 g/100g crude protein)
essential amino acid in all the samples (both control and for-
tified samples) while glutamic acid was the most concen-
trated amino acid (6.54 to 8.88 g/100g crude protein, cp) as
expected in legumes [29, 30]. Tryptophan concentrations
could not be determined. Increased scarlet runner bean sub-
stitution gave progressive higher concentrations of all the
essential amino acids (AA) though His, Arg and Thr re-
corded reduction only in 90:10 substitution ratio. Levels of
CV% ranged from 7.6 in Gly to 53.4 in Cys. Differences in
the mean amino acid composition between maize ogi (100%)
and fortified products revealed that there was progressive
increase of all the AA from 80:20 to 60:40 substitutions ex-
cept Pro which had decrease of 4.9% at 70:30 substitution
ratio Table 6. At 90:10 scarlet runner bean – substituted
maize ogi flours, four AAs that were reduced in concentraton
were His, Arg, Thr and Pro with percentage values of 4.0,
21.5, 1.8 and 9.4%, respectively. The CV% was variously
varied with a range of 11.9 in Met to 100.0 in Thr. High-
lights of the increases recorded in EAA were (in %): Lys
(3.3 – 33.4), His (28.4 – 31.8), Arg (14.8 – 27.8), Thr (2.7 –
37.0), Val (15.7 – 33.7), Met (4.2 – 42.1), Ile (23.9 – 62.0),
Leu (8.8 – 31.2), Tyr (18.1 – 27.1) and Phe (15.9 – 35.2).
The concentrations of total AA (TAA), total non-
essential AA (TNAA), total essential AA (TEAA) with His,
essential alphatic AA (EAAA), essential aromatic AA
(EArAA) and total sulphur AA (TSAA) of 100% maize ogi
(control) were 49.20, 28.83, 20.37, 11.93, 2.70 and 1.10
g/100g cp, respectively Table 7. Fortified samples had pro-
gressive increase in the concentration levels of TAA,
TNEAA, TEAA, EAAA, EArAA and TSAA. The TAA in
this report (40.20 – 64.01 g/100g cp) are close to the TAA in
the bambara groundnut (68.5 g/100g cp) [13] and dehulled
African yam beans (70.3 g/100g cp) [11]. The contents of
Table 4. Differences in the Mean Mineral Composition Between Maize Ogi and Different Fortified Products
Mineral I – II I – III I – IV I – V Mean SD CV%
Ca 31.70 (29.3%) 28.80 (26.6%) 40.57 (37.5%) 0.00 (0.0%) 25.27 8.50 33.6
Cr –0.21 (–8.2%) –1.77 (–69.1%) –2.18 (85.2%) –3.19 (–124.6%) 1.84 1.07 58.2
Co – – – – – – –
Cd – – – – – – –
P –11.20 (–29.6%) 0.63 (1.7%) –9.26 (–24.4%) –12.60 (–33.3%) 8.42 4.64 55.1
Zn 0.32 (6.5%) 0.61 (12.4%) –054 (11.0%) –0.53 (10.8%) 0.50 0.10 20.0
Cu – – – – – – –
Mn –0.28 (–31.8%) –0.66 (–75.0%) –0.86 (–97.7%) –1.51 (–171.6%) 0.83 0.45 54.2
Ni – – – – – – –
Fe 1.71 (9.4%) –0.58 (–3.2%) –3.46 (–1.91%) –3.28 (–18.1%) 2.26 1.18 52.2
Mg –92.97 (–120.6%) –134.0 (–173.8%) –166.96(–216.5%) –154.50(–200.3%) 137.11 28.07 20.5
K 6.20 (29.5) % 3.80 (18.1%) 1.00 (4.8%) 1.60 (4.8%) 3.00 2.17 72.3
Na –0.06 (–0.1%) –13.7 (–25.5%) 3.80 (7.1%) –14.72 (–27.4%) 8.07 5.66 70.1
Pb – – – – – – –
Ca/P 1.3 (44.8%) 0.78 (26.9%) 1.47 (50.7%) 0.76 (26.2%) 1.08 0.55 50.9
Na/K –1.08 (–42.2%) –1.36 (–53.1%) 0.06 (2.3%) 0.42 (16.4%) 0.73 0.52 71.2
I = 100% maize ogi; II = 90 maize ogi:10 SRB; III = 80 ma ize ogi :20 SRB; IV = 70 maize ogi:30 SRB; V = 60 maize ogi:40 SRB; SRB = scarlet runner bean; SD = standard devia-
tion; CV = coefficient of variation; – = not determined
168 The Open Nutraceuticals Journal, 2011, Volume 4 Aremu et al.
Table 5. Amino Acid Profiles of Maize Ogi Fortified With Scarlet Runner Bean Flour (g/100g Crude Protein)
Amino Acid I II III IV V Mean SD CV%
Lysine (Lys)* 3.38 3.49 3.81 4.51 3.79 3.80 0.39 10.3
Histidine (His)* 1.76 1.69 2.26 2.32 2.26 2.06 0.28 13.6
Arginine (Arg)* 4.00 3.34 4.59 5.11 4.59 4.33 0.61 14.1
Aspartic acid (Asp) 6.30 7.29 8.23 8.13 8.73 7.74 0.85 11.0
Threonine (Thr)* 2.19 2.15 2.50 3.00 2.25 2.42 0.32 13.2
Serine (Ser) 1.73 1.78 2.05 2.32 3.08 2.19 0.49 22.4
Glutamic acid(Glu) 6.54 7.60 8.60 8.88 8.49 8.02 0.86 10.7
Proline (Pro) 2.23 2.02 3.19 2.12 2.55 2.42 0.42 17.4
Glycine (Gly) 2.80 3.40 2.99 3.40 3.09 3.14 0.24 7.6
Alanine (Ala) 2.93 3.01 3.47 3.28 3.17 3.17 0.44 13.9
Cystine (Cys) 0.53 0.60 0.86 0.93 0.73 0.73 0.39 53.4
Valine (Val)* 2.61 3.08 3.02 3.49 3.20 3.08 0.27 8.8
Methionine (Met)* 0.57 0.65 0.81 0.78 0.68 0.69 0.08 11.6
Isoleucine (Ile)* 2.13 2.64 3.26 3.14 3.45 2.94 0.48 16.3
Leucine (Leu)* 5.00 5.90 5.44 6.29 6.56 5.84 0.56 9.6
Tyrosine (Tyr) 1.77 2.09 2.09 2.25 2.25 2.73 0.66 24.2
Phenylalanine (Phe)* 2.70 3.38 3.13 4.06 3.65 3.38 0.46 11.8
*Essential amino acids; I = 100% maize ogi; II = 90 maize ogi:10 SRB; III = 80 maize ogi:20 SRB; IV = 70 maize ogi:30 SRB; V = 60 maize ogi:40 SRB; SRB = scarlet runner
bean; SD = standard deviation; CV = coefficient of variation.
Table 6. Differences in the Mean Amino Acid Composition Between Maize Ogi and Different Fortified Products
Amino Acid I – II I – III I – IV I – V Mean SD CV%
Lys* –0.11 (–3.3) –0.43 (–12.7) –1.13 (–33.4) –0.41 (–21.1) 0.52 0.37 71.2
His* 0.07 (4.0) –0.50 (–28.4) –0.56 (–31.8) –0.50 (–28.4) 0.41 0.20 48.8
Arg* 0.86 (21.5) –0.95 (–23.8) –1.11 (–27.8) –0.59 (–14.8) 0.88 0.19 21.6
Asp –0.99 (–15.7) –1.93 (–30.6) –1.83 (–29.0) –2.43 (–38.6) 1.80 0.52 28.9
Thr* 0.04 (1.8) –0.31 (–31.0) –0.81 (–37.0) –0.06 (–2.7) 0.31 0.31 100.0
Ser –0.05 (–2.9) –0.32 (–18.5) –0.59 (34.1) –1.35 (–78.0) 0.58 0.48 82.8
Glu –1.06 (–16.2) –2.06 (–31.5) –2.34 (–35.8) –1.95 (–29.8) 1.85 0.49 26.5
Pro 0.21 (9.4) –0.96 (–43.0) 0.11 (4.9) –0.32 (14.3) 0.40 0.33 82.5
Gly –0.60 (–21.4) –0.19 (–6.8) –0.6 (–21.4) –0.29 (–10.4) 0.42 0.18 42.9
Ala –0.08 (–2.7) –0.54 (–18.4) –0.35 (–11.9) –0.24 (–8.2) 0.30 0.17 56.7
Cys –0.07 (–9.6) –0.33 (–62.3) –0.40 (–75.5) –0.20 (–37.7) 0.25 0.12 48.0
Val* –0.47 (–18.0) –0.41 (–15.7) –0.88 (–33.7) –0.59 (–22.6) 0.59 0.18 30.5
Met* –0.08 (–14.0) –0.24 (42.1) –0.21 (–36.8) –0.11 (–4.2) 0.16 0.07 11.9
Ile* –0.51 (–23.9) –1.13 (–53.1) –1.01 (–47.4) –1.32 (–62.0) 0.99 0.30 30.3
Leu* –0.90 (18.0) –0.44 (–8.8) –1.29 (–25.8) –1.56 (–31.2) 1.05 0.42 40.0
Tyr –0.32 (–18.1) –0.32 (–18.1) –0.48 (–27.1) –0.48 (27.1) 0.40 0.10 25.0
Phe* –0.68 (–25.2) –0.43 (–15.9) –0.95 (–35.2) –0.95 (–35.2) 0.75 0.22 29.3
*Essential amino acids; I = 100% maize ogi; II = 90 maize ogi:10 SRB; III = 80 maize ogi:20 SRB; IV = 70 maize ogi:30 SRB; V = 60 maize ogi:40 SRB; SRB = scarlet runner
bean; SD = standard deviation; CV = coefficient of variation.
Biochemical Evaluation of Fermented White Maize (Zea Mays L.) The Open Nutraceuticals Journal, 2011, Volume 4 169
Table 7. Concentrations of Essential, Non-Essential, Acidic, Neutral, Sulphur, Aromatic, etc. (g/100g Crude Protein) of Maize Ogi
Fortified With Scarlet Runner Bean Flour
Parameter I II III IV V Mean SD CV%
Total Amino Acid (TAA) 49.20 54.11 60.30 64.01 62.52 58.03 5.56 9.6
Total Non-Essential Amino Acid (TNEAA) 28.83 31.14 36.07 36.42 36.68 33.82 4.58 13.5
% TNEAA 58.59 57.54 59.81 56.89 58.66 58.30 1.01 1.7
Total Essential Amino Acid (TEAA)
*With His 20.37 22.98 24.23 27.59 25.84 24.20 2.46 10.2
*Without His 18.58 21.29 21.97 25.27 23.58 22.14 2.25 10.2
% TEAA
*With His 41.40 42.46 40.18 43.10 41.33 41.69 1.01 2.4
*Without His 37.76 39.34 36.43 39.47 37.71 38.14 1.14 3.0
Essential Aliphatic Amino Acid (EAAA) 11.93 13.77 14.22 15.92 15.46 14.29 1.41 9.8
Essential Aromatic Amino Acid (EArAA) 2.70 3.38 3.13 4.06 3.65 3.38 0.46 13.6
Total Neutral Amino Acid (TNAA) 27.19 30.7 32.81 35.06 34.66 32.08 2.02 6.3
% TNAA 55.26 56.73 54.41 54.77 55.43 55.32 0.79 1.4
Total Acidic Amino Acid (TAAA) 12.84 14.87 16.83 17.01 17.22 15.75 1.68 10.7
% TAAA 26.09 27.51 27.91 26.57 27.54 27.12 0.68 2.5
Total Basic Amino Acid (TBAA) 9.17 8.52 10.66 11.94 10.64 10.19 1.21 11.9
% TBAA 18.63 15.74 17.67 18.65 17.01 17.54 1.09 6.2
Total Sulphur Amino Acid (TSAA) 1.10 1.25 1.67 1.71 1.41 1.43 0.40 27.9
% Cystine in TSAA 48.18 48.00 54.44 54.38 51.77 51.35 2.83 5.5
P-PER 1.61 1.99 1.76 2.15 2.27 1.96 0.24 12.4
pI 2.89 3.01 3.49 3.74 3.58 3.34 0.33 9.9
Leu/Ile (ratio) 2.35 2.23 1.67 2.00 1.90 2.03 0.24 11.9
Leu – Ile (diff) 2.87 3.26 2.18 3.15 3.11 2.91 0.39 13.3
% Leu – Ile (diff) 57.40 55.30 40.10 50.10 47.40 50.06 6.13 0.1
*Essential amino acids; I = 100% maize ogi; II = 90 maize ogi:10 SRB; III = 80 maize ogi:20 SRB; IV = 70 maize ogi:30 SRB; V = 60 maize ogi:40 SRB; SRB = scarlet runner
bean; SD = standard deviation; CV = coefficient of variation.
TSAA (1.10 – 1.71 g/100g cp) are lower than the 5.8 g/100g
cp recommended for infants [31]. The EArAA range sug-
gested for ideal infant protein (6.8 – 11.8 g/100g cp) [31] has
current values close to the minimum, i.e. 2.70 – 4.06 g/100g
cp. The EArAA are precursors of epinephrine and thyroxin
[32]. The percentage ratios of TEAA to TAA in the samples
ranged from 41.40 to 43.10% which are well above the 39%
considered to be adequate for ideal protein food for infants,
26% for children and 11% for adults [31]. The TEAA/TAA
percentage contents are close to that of egg (50%) [19],
and well comparable with 43.6% reported for pigeon pea
flour [33], 43.8% for beach pea protein isolate [34] and
40.6% reported for cashew nut [35]. The predicted protein
efficiency ratio (P-PER) is one of the quality parameter used
for protein evaluation [19]. The P-PER values in this report
Table 7 are higher than cowpea (1.21) and sorghum ogi
(0.27) [6] but comparable with millet ogi (1.62) [6] and
pigeon pea (1.82) [33].
The presence of D-isomers also reduces the digestibility
of the protein because peptide bonds involving D residues
are less easily hydrolyzed in vivo than those containing only
L residues. Moreover, certain D amino acids exert a toxic
action, in proportion to the amount absorbed through the
intestinal wall [36]. This elucidates a word of caution on the
excessive consumption of maize ogi or its fortified products.
A common feature of sorghum and maize is that the proteins
of these grains contain a relatively high proportion of
leucine. It was therefore suggested that an amino acid imbal-
ance from excess leucine might be a factor in the develop-
ment of pellagra [37]. Clinical, biochemical and pathological
observations in experiments conducted in humans and labo-
ratory animals showed that high leucine in the diet impairs
170 The Open Nutraceuticals Journal, 2011, Volume 4 Aremu et al.
the metabolism of tryptophan and niacin and is responsible
for niacin deficiency in sorghum eaters [38]. High leucine
is also a factor contributing to the pellagragenic properties
of maize [39]. These studies suggested that the leucine/
isoleucine balance is more important than dietary excess of
leucine alone in regulating the metabolism of tryptophan and
niacin and hence the disease process. The present Leu/Ile
ratios were low in values (1.67 – 2.35) Table 7. The calcu-
lated isoelectric point (pI) ranged from 2.89 to 3.74. This is
useful in predicting the pI for protein in order to enhance a
quick precipitation of protein isolate from biological samples
[17]. The highest variability was TSAA (CV%, 27.9) while
the least was p ercentage of Leu to Ile difference (CV%, 0.1)
Table 7.
The EAA scores (EAAS) of the samples based on the
provisional amino acid scoring pattern [19] are shown in
Table 8. The EAAS greater than 1.0 was Phe + Try for 70:30
substitution ratio sample. This shows that supplementation
may be required in Ile, Leu, Lys, Met + Cys (TSAA), Thr
and Val for all the fortified products. However, EAAS based
on FAO/WHO/UNU [31] standards for the infants with a
required value of 1.9 g/100g cp for His, showed that fortified
samples of 80:20, 70:30 and 60:40 substitution ratios had
scores of His more than 1.0 Table 5. Histidine is a semi-
essential AA particularly useful for children growth. It is the
precursor of histidine present in small quantities in cells.
When allergens enter the tissues, it is liberated in larger
quantities and is responsible for nettle rash [40]. The limiting
amino acid (LAA) for all the samples was Met + Cys Table
8. This agrees with the report of FAO/WHO/UNU [31] that
the EAA most often acting in a limiting capacity are Met
(and Cys), Lys, Thr and Try. Try was not determined in this
report.
CONCLUSIONS
This work has presented the nutritional quality of maize
ogi from a composite mixture of white maize (Zea mays L.)
and scarlet runner bean (Phaseolus coccineus L.) flours. The
study showed that increased scarlet runner bean flour substi-
tution gave progressive higher protein, crude fibre and ash
contents of the fortified products with lower fat and carbo-
hydrate contents. It was found that the samples were good
sources of essential minerals and of high quality protein with
adequate essential amino acids expected for the infants.
However, the quality attributes of maize ogi can be ade-
quately maintained at 70:30 and 60:40 scarlet runner bean
seed substitution ogi mass ratios.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
M. O. Aremu (Ph.D) wishes to express his appreciation
to Education Trust Fund (ETF), Nigeria for financial support
rendered for this research work.
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Received: June 04, 2011 Revised: July 15, 2011 Accepted: August 03, 2011
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