Implication of acacia gum for cereal-legume-millet-based composite flour: Nutritional and functional attributes and biological activity

Implication of acacia gum for cereal-legume-millet-based composite flour: Nutritional and functional attributes and biological activity | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Implication of acacia gum for cereal-legume-millet-based composite flour: Nutritional and functional attributes and biological activity Viswanath Vaduguru, Mohankumari Honganoor Puttananjaiah This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-4281813/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract This study evaluated the nutritional and functional properties, bioactive compounds and scavenging activities of composite flour (rice, ragi, cowpea and black gram) formulations with and without acacia gum. Bioactive components such as total phenolic content, total flavonoid content and antioxidant activity were also analyzed. The protein and ash contents were greater in F 3 -AG, at 15.47 ± 0.76% and 2.69 ± 0.25%, respectively. F 2 -AG had the highest WAC (%) of 135.74 ± 1.80, followed by F 3 -AG with 119.19 ± 1.01. F 2 + AG had the highest oil absorption capacity (66.71 ± 0.82%), followed by F 1 + AG (65.90 + 1.20%). The foam capacity of the different flour formulations ranged from 11.47 to 15.20%. The FC of F 3 + AG (15.20%) was found to be high among the other formulations. FS was most common in F 2 -AG (88.55%), followed by F 2 + AG (80.58%). The highest EA was observed for F 1 + AG (42.05%), followed by F 2 + AG (40.58%). The highest ES was observed for F 2 + AG (59.18%), followed by F 3 + AG (50.18%). PAC was greater in the composite flour (6.40–6.70 mg/g) than in the individual flours (0.47–5.49 mg/g). Compared with those in the F1-AG and F2 + AG groups, the protein content in the S1-AG and S2 + AG groups was increased. The main objective of this study was to enhance the nutritional quality and functional properties of the product prepared from composite flour. The results also suggested that blending cereals and pulse flour could enhance the functional properties and bioactive components of composite flours. Food Science & Technology Composite flour Functional property bioactive compounds Food composition Flour preparation Antioxidant activity Figures Figure 1 Figure 2 Figure 3 Figure 4 1. INTRODUCTION Composite flours play an important role as substitutes for wheat flour. Composite flour is a blend of various protein-enriched nutrients and starches. Different cereals and pulses are used to create composite flour. Composite flour helps to boost the nourishing value and value of bakery products (Chandra et al., 2015 ). The addition of a composite flour results in high protein, ash, and amino acid contents. The functional characteristics of composite foods are evidently improved with the augmentation of flour samples by the addition of swelling capacity, bulk density and emulsion stability. The multigrain is frequently used in confectionaries and products such as breakfast cereals and has a progressive effect on the texture and taste of products because of its enhanced health benefits and public acceptability. The invention and ingestion of functional composite flour improve the nutritional characteristics and dietary quality of the flour (Waleed et al., 2017 ) and (Noorfarahzilah et al., 2014 ). The quality of the product is influenced by the proportional composition of the composites and their flour properties (Oladunmoye et al., 2010 ). Composite flour also reduces the import of wheat flour and boosts the use of domestic agricultural products for flour preparation (Hugo et al., 2000 ). Composite flour also has a role in weight control, cardiac attack, reducing diabetes, and improving the digestive system. In addition, composite flour significantly decreases lipoprotein cholesterol, serum lipid levels, serum glycosylated protein levels and glycosylated albumin levels (Mughal, 2019 ). Conversely, it also benefits people suffering from degenerative disease associated with their current environment and lifestyle. Composite flour contains an extensive amount of phenolic acids and plays an imperative role in preventing cancer, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. The objective of this investigation was to study the effect of acacia gum on nutritional status, functional properties, and biological activity of multigrain composite flour. The use of cereals, legumes, and millet as sustainable sources of functional composite flours is increasing. Nonalutilization of wheat in flour is intended to alleviate gluten-related celiac disease. Cereals (rice, amaranth, tigernut), legumes (African oil bean, soybeans, Kinger’s groundnut, bambara groundnut) and millet (ragi, proso, little) have been consumed as reliable foundations of composite flours (Awolu et al., 2016 ); (Awolu et al., 2015 ). Composite flours have been used extensively and successfully in the production of baked foods. There are some studies on the use of cereal-tube-legume combinations for the preparation of various products (Oladunmoye et al., 2010 ). (Oladunmoye et al., 2010 ) reported that the quality of a product is strongly influenced by the proportional composition of the different composites and their flour properties. In many African populations, cereal‒legume-based flour is used as a basic staple food in the form of porridge for breakfast and as a weaning food for children. Cereals, such as rice, wheat, sorghum, and maize, are sources of calories, minerals, vitamins, fats, oils, and complex carbohydrates but have low lysine and protein contents (Famakin et al., 2016 ). Conversely, legumes such as soybeans, green grams, and cowpea plants are moderately rich in proteins, dietary fiber, vitamins and minerals (Tharanathan and Mahadevamma, 2003 ). Currently, except for Sudan and Ethiopia, sub-Saharan African countries have become absolutely dependent on imported wheat (Eleazu et al., 2014 ). The development of celiac disease (gluten-sensitive enteropathy) is another challenge related to wheat consumption. The use of composite flour helps to neutralize such complications. Composite flour with numerous flours succeeded from native crops has been highlighted in many low-income countries, with or without wheat flour (Shittu et al., 2007 ); (Renzetti et al., 2008 ). The presence of antinutrients (phytate, oxalate, and tannins) is one of the key complications of plant-based flours that limits their utilization (Kathirvel and Kumudha, 2011 ). Even though tannins and phytate help reduce blood glucose and insulin levels in response to starchy foods, oxalate is a slight pro-oxidant that is toxic because it generates free radicals (Kumar et al., 2010 ). Antinutrients affect the bioaccessibility of calcium, zinc, iron (Kruger et al., 2013 ) and proteins (Gibson et al., 2010 ). The soaking and heat processing method helps in eliminating these antinutritional factors (Patterson et al., 2017 ). The soaking and cooking processes effectively decrease the levels of lectins and oxalate in common beans and soybeans (Shi et al., 2018 ). This hampers the exploitation of ingested nutrients, which in turn decreases their nutritive value (Gemede et al., 2016 ). Food with low mineral availability leads to malnutrition, anemia, osteoporosis, and impairment of child growth (Akhter et al., 2012 ). GumArabia is broadly used as an encapsulating material, foaming agent and emulsifier in food industries (Rosland Abel et al., 2020 ). They are added to food products as thickening and gelling agents. They are used to improve mouth feel and change the viscosity of solution due to their high polymeric nature and their interactions between polymer chains when they are dispersed (Smith and Wilds, 2009 ). To succeed in the effective application and promotion of cereal‒legume-based composite flours containing acacia gum, rice, ragi, cowpea and black gram flours were tested. This study was carried out to determine the effect of acacia gum in flour formulations. In this study, these grains were selected because of their high carbohydrate, protein and fiber contents. In the case of the ragi, the whole ragi and husk were used. Blending whole grains that are rich in protein, dietary fiber, and minerals in staple food items is considered beneficial for health (Indrani et al., 2011 ). Three formulations were prepared with and without acacia gum. 2. MATERIALS AND METHODS 2.1. Chemicals and reagents Gallic acid, Folin-Ciocalteu reagent, bovine albumin serum and CBB G-250 were purchased from Sigma‒Aldrich Chemical Co. (St. Louis, MO). Methanol, petroleum ether and other chemicals were procured from SRL. Other analytical grade chemicals and reagents were purchased from Qualigens Fine Chemicals (Mumbai, India) and Nice Chemicals (Kochi, India). Pure Millipore water was obtained with a Milli-Q system (Simplicity UV, ultrapure, type-1 water). Acacia gum was obtained from Sigma Aldrich. 2.2. Sample collection and storage Grains such as Rice, Ragi, Cowpea and Black Gram were purchased from supermarkets in Mysuru of Karnataka and stored at 4°C. All the seeds were purchased from a single batch. All the seeds were size-sorted and used for the preparation of flour. 2.3. Methodology 2.3.1. Sorting and dehulling of cowpea and black gram Flour production involves cleaning, sorting and grading, dehulling, and milling into flour. Since seed quality is important, seed sorting is performed to remove shriveled and broken seeds from full seeds. The cleaned medium-sized seeds were dehulled in a dehusker (mini versatile dhal mill, designed and developed by the Central Food Technological Research Institute, Mysore, India). Similarly, the ragi and rice were also cleaned. All the grains were milled into complete flour. 2.3.2. Composite flour formulations The three different intervals of rice, ragi, cowpea, and black-gram flour were used for the composite flours with and without gum (Table 1 ). Acacia gum (1.0% of the total weight) was blended with the composite flours. Rice, ragi, cowpea, and black grams were powdered and sieved through 60 mesh sieves. The three different proportions of rice, ragi, cowpea, and black-gram flour (Table 1 ) were used in the preparation of composite flours. Composite flours were prepared with and without acacia gum (AG, 1.0%, by total weight). Acacia gum was substituted for ragi flour. Rice and ragi were blended with cowpea flour, black gram flour, and acacia gum by using a blender. Table 1 Composite flour formulations Formulations Flours and acacia gum (%) Rice Ragi Black gram Cowpea Acacia gum F 1 + AG 20 49 10 20 1 F 2 + AG 25 39 5 30 1 F 3 + AG 30 24 5 40 1 F 1 -AG 20 50 10 20 0 F 2 -AG 25 40 5 30 0 F 3 -AG 30 25 5 40 0 F 1 + AG = formulation 1 with acacia gum; F 2 + AG = formulation 2 with acacia gum; F 3 + AG = formulation 3 with acacia gum; F 1 -AG = formulation 1 without acacia gum; F 2 -AG = formulation 2 without acacia gum; F 3 -AG = formulation 3 without acacia gum; AG = acacia gum. The composite flour samples were stored in airtight containers for further analysis. The samples (from the individual flour and composite flour) were analyzed for proximate, physical, functional, bioactive compound, and antioxidant properties. 2.4. Nutritional attributes 2.4.1. Proximate analysis The proximate composition was determined according to the AOAC method. The moisture content of the individual and composite flour samples was analyzed for moisture, ash, crude protein, crude fat, crude fiber, and carbohydrate content using the standard method of AOAC (2005). The proximate compositions of the individual and composite flour samples were analyzed. The percentage of carbohydrate content was obtained by subtracting the sum of the percentages of moisture, crude protein, ash, and fat from 100. The caloric value (kcal/100 g) was calculated using Atwater’s conversion factors based on the caloric coefficients corresponding to the protein (4 kcal/g), carbohydrate (4 kcal/g), and fat (9 kcal/g) contents. All the experiments were carried out in triplicate. 2.5. Physical properties/Technological parameters Physical property analyses, such as particle size analysis, bulk density, tap density and color characterization, were carried out for the individual flours and formulations. 2.5.1. Particle size analysis Dohulled cotyledons ground into flour were passed through a 60 mesh BSS sieve by the mechanical sieving method. The individual and composite flours were subjected to a particle size analyzer. The particle size of the flour was measured via laser diffraction using a Microtrac Blue wave model 55796. 2.5.2. Bulk density - loose bulk density (LBD) and packed bulk density (PBD) The bulk density (BD) of the samples was determined by the gravimetric method defined by (Amandikwa et al., 2015 ). Approximately 10 g of sample was placed in a 25 ml calibrated measuring cylinder, and the volume was noted as the loose volume. The bottom of the cylinder tapped constantly on a firm laboratory bench until it reached a constant volume, which was the packing volume. The LBD and PBD were calculated as the proportion of the weight of the sample to the volume of the sample before and after tapping, respectively. 2.5.3. Tap density: Tap density was measured according to previous methods (Deshpande and Poshadri, 2011 ). The sample was packed to 20 ml in a measuring cylinder with a 50 ml capacity and tapped 5–10 times. A total of 20 ml of sample was weighed. 2.5.4. Swelling capacity (SC) The swelling capacity of the samples was determined according to previous procedures (OKAKA and POTTER, 1977 ). 2.5.5. Color The color of the samples was measured by a Hunter Lab (Labscan XE, Reston, Virginia) color measuring system by measuring the degree of lightness (L*), redness (a*), yellowness (b*) and the total deviation in color ∆E from the standard. Measurements were made at random locations on the surface of the sample, and lightness (L*) values were noted. The color values of the flour and formulations were determined in accordance with the CIELAB color measurement system (Lab Scan XE Hunter Lab Instruments, Virginia, USA). 2.6. Bioactive compounds and antioxidant activity 2.6.1. Quantification of total phenolic compound (TPC), total flavonoid (TFC) and total proanthocyanidin (PAC) contents The phenolic compounds were extracted from the defatted flours and their formulations using 80% aqueous methanol containing 1% HCl (1:50 w/v) by refluxing in a thermostated water bath at 55°C for 60 min (x3 times) followed by centrifugation (Pradeep and Sreerama, 2015 ). The combined supernatants were evaporated under reduced pressure and used to determine the total phenolic content. The TPC was measured by the method of (Singleton et al., 1999 ), with modifications as described by (Xu and Chang, 2007 ). The total phenolic content in each extract was expressed as mg gallic acid equivalents (GAE) per gram of defatted flour. The total flavonoid content (TFC) was determined by an aluminum chloride calorimetric assay (Kim et al., 2003 ), in which the absorbance was measured at 510 nm and is expressed as milligrams of catechin equivalent (CE) per gram of defatted flour. The proanthocyanidin (PC) content was determined by the vanillin-HCl method (Price et al., 1978 ) and is expressed as milligrams of catechin per gram of defatted flour. 2.6.2. Assessment of in vitro antioxidant potential The antioxidant activity of flour and formulations was determined through estimation of free radical scavenging activities in methanol extracts using 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) (Brand-Williams et al., 1995 ). The absorbance was measured at 517 nm against methanol as a blank. The DPPH radical scavenging activity was calculated by a Trolox standard curve and is expressed as micromoles of Trolox equivalents (TE) per gram of defatted flour. The test was carried out in triplicate, and the results were calculated as follows: Activity (%) = A control -A test /A control × 100 where A test is the absorbance of the sample and A control is the absorbance of the methanolic DPPH solution. 2.7. Functional properties 2.7.1. Protein solubility (nitrogen solubility) in water and NaCl The soluble nitrogen content of the flours and formulations was determined in distilled water (pH 7) and 0.5 N NaCl (pH 7) (Boye et al., 2010 ). The protein content in the supernatant was determined by the (Bradford, 1976 ) method. The percentage of soluble protein was calculated from a standard graph using BSA and was expressed as mg/g flour sample. 2.8. Hydration properties 2.8.1. Water and oil absorption capacity (WAC) The water absorption capacities of the flours and their formulations were determined by the method described by (Anderson et al., 1969 ). A total of 0.5 g (10% (w/v)) of sample suspension was vortexed and kept at room temperature for 30 min followed by centrifugation at 3000 rpm for 10 min. The sediment was separated from the supernatant and weighed along with the tube. The resulting supernatant was evaporated, and the dissolved solid weight was determined. The water solubility index (WSI) and water absorption index (WAI) were determined according to the methods developed by (Seth et al., 2015 ). The WSI of the samples was determined from the amount of dried solids recovered by evaporating the supernatant from the flour water absorption capacity. The WAI of the samples was calculated by the weight of the pellet after removal of the supernatant per unit weight of original dry sample. The oil absorption capacity (OAC) was assessed by centrifuging a known amount of sample saturated with sunflower oil (density 0.9 g/ml) (Sosulski, 1962 ). The amount of oil retained was expressed as the difference in the weights of the sample before and after equilibration with oil. 2.8.2. Foaming and emulsifying properties The foaming capacity (FC) and foaming stability (FS) were determined according to the methods of (Chau and Cheung, 1998 ). Foaming capacity was expressed as the increase in percent of foam volume measured after 30 seconds of whipping in a blender. Foam stability was determined by measuring the FC after the samples had stood for 30 minutes. The emulsion activity (Ea) and emulsion stability (Es) were assessed by the methods of (Yatsumatsu et al., 1972 ). The heights of the emulsified layers as a percentage of the total heights of the material in the unheated and heated tubes were used for calculating emulsifying activity and stability, respectively. 2.8.3. Least gelation concentration The least gelation concentration (LGC) was determined by the method described by (Coffman and Garcia, 1977 ). Appropriate amounts of sample were weighed into test tubes. The LGC is the concentration when the sample from the inverted test tube does not fall or slip off. The gels were characterized by the absence of a (-), a mobile gel (+), a firm gel (++) or a very firm gel (+++). Statistical analysis The results of the above experiments are expressed as the mean ± standard deviation (SD, n = 3). 3. Results and discussion A whole grain kernel consists of the endosperm, germ, and bran. The outer coating of bran is rich in fiber, and lignans, minerals, vitamins and phytochemicals (phenolic acids and phytosterol compounds) are abundant in the inner germ. Pulses are part of a balanced and healthy diet with an important role in the prevention of illnesses, diabetes, cancer and heart-related diseases. Pulses are rich in fiber, are a low-fat source of protein and have a low glycemic index. The grinding procedure is a unit process for reducing the size of the material. Grinding plays a major role in the food industry. Size reduction plays a major role in many food processes and is accomplished by applying diverse forces to produce particles with definite sizes and shapes. All the raw materials were dehulled by a versatile dhal mill to separate the germ, cotyledon, and husk. The raw materials were powdered and passed through a 60 mesh BSS sieve. The proximity of a sample plays an imperative role in understanding the nutrients in the sample. In addition to its nutritional value, protein content also provides important technological indications. The protein content provides an indicator of the quantity of water absorbed for a certain level of dough consistency and aids in predicting the total time required for development, stability and softening. A constant percentage of acacia gum (1.0%) was used in the formulations due to its function as a thickening agent and stabilizer to complete the characterization of gluten-free flour (Gambuś et al., 2007 ). The moisture content of food materials before grinding is a significant parameter for ensuring good flowability. For various food materials, the initial moisture content plays a major role in determining the size distribution of particles and the grinding time. Controlling the moisture content via pretreatment steps such as drying or adding moisture is imperative before grinding. The approximate compositions of the individual flours are shown in Table 2 . The moisture contents of the rice flour, ragi flour, black-gramed flour, and cowpea flour were 5.40%, 11.72%, 6.43% and 6.23%, respectively. The protein content was greater in black-gram-old and cowpea flour. Table 2 Proximate composition of individual flours Rice Ragi Black gram Cowpea Moisture 5.40 ± 0.49 11.72 ± 0.69 6.43 ± 0.60 6.23 ± 0.20 Ash 0.53 ± 0.10 2.54 ± 0.04 3.33 ± 0.06 3.61 ± 0.03 Fat 0.72 ± 0.06 1.34 ± 0.07 1.28 ± 0.02 1.32 ± 0.09 Protein 8.41 ± 0.19 6.05 ± 0.65 23.13 ± 0.30 22.22 ± 0.18 Carbohydrates 84.94 ± 0.53 78.13 ± 1.08 65.82 ± 0.42 66.56 ± 0.31 Calories 379.89 348.78 367.32 367.00 Together with moisture, protein, fiber, and sodium content, fat content is one of the five key parameters used in assessing food quality. Cowpea and black-gram vegetables have higher protein and ash contents than rice and the ragi. Cowpea is rich in protein, fat and ash, with 22.22%, 1.38% and 3.61%, respectively. The ash content measures the amount of minerals present within a food. A mixture of different flours from legumes, cereal plants or millet plants was used as the composite flour. It is produced to fulfill specific nutrients and functional characteristics. The final product, with respect to its functional and physicochemical properties and health benefits, mainly depends on the beneficial effects of the use of composite flour. The moisture contents of the composite flours with and without acacia gum are reported in Table 3 . Table 3 Composite flour composition F 1 + AG F 2 + AG F 3 + AG F 1 -AG F 2 -AG F 3 -AG Moisture 8.87 ± 0.30 7.94 ± 0.93 6.38 ± 0.12 10.36 ± 0.18 9.85 ± 0.12 9.53 ± 0.10 Ash 2.49 ± 0.15 2.53 ± 0.20 2.54 ± 0.10 2.45 ± 0.06 2.48 ± 0.19 2.69 ± 0.25 Fat 1.49 ± 0.12 1.41 ± 0.11 1.43 ± 0.10 1.37 ± 0.01 1.14 ± 0.03 1.07 ± 0.01 Protein 13.12 ± 0.93 12.53 ± 0.16 14.65 ± 0.06 11.53 ± 0.84 13.22 ± 1.06 15.47 ± 0.76 Carbohydrates 73.93 ± 0.67 75.63 ± 1.01 74.31 ± 1.00 74.29 ± 0.62 73.30 ± 0.96 71.24 ± 1.02 Calories 361.65 365.31 368.72 355.61 356.37 356.52 The moisture content varies depending upon the blending ratio. It is clearly shown that there is a decrease in the percentage of moisture content in the composite flours as the amount of ragi flour decreased from 49 − 24% (Table 3 ). The percentage of moisture content in the composite flour was also strongly affected by the combination of the two materials with acacia gum. The highest moisture content was observed for F 1 -AG (10.36%), and the lowest was observed for F 3 + AG (6.38%). This difference may be due to the absorption of moisture by Acacia gum and cowpea. Ash content was lower in flour samples with acacia gum than in those without acacia gum. The ash content is an indicator of the nonorganic compound content in food. The ash content varied from 2.45–2.69% in the different flour formulations. The composite flour F 3 -AG had the highest ash content (2.69%), implying a higher mineral content. The protein content increased (12.53–14.65%) with increasing percentage of pulsed flour in the formulations with acacia gum. The protein content was greater in the composite flour without acacia gum (15.47%) than in that with acacia gum (14.65%). The ash and protein contents were greater in the F3-AG group. This could essentially be due to the higher content of protein in cowpea and black-gram cowpea. (Abioye et al., 2011 ) also reported that the higher protein content in composite flour was because of the high protein content in soybeans. The highest fat content was observed for the F 1 + AG flour (1.49%), and the lowest was observed for the F 3 -AG flour (1.07%). The fat content of the composite flour with acacia gum was greater than that of the flour without acacia gum. This difference may be due to the absorption of moisture by acacia gum. The study showed that the moisture content of the composite flours decreased with decreasing proportion of ragi flour from 49–24%. Similar trends were reported by (Kaushal et al., 2012 ). The authors used blends of taro, rice, and pigeon pea flour, which resulted in a reduction in the moisture content of the composite flours. The protein content of F 3 -AG was 15.47%, followed by that of F3 + AG (14.65%), which was > 13%, meeting the desired protein levels (Chillo et al., 2008 ). 3.1. Physical properties/technological parameters The flour particle size degrades the water holding capacity of flour by affecting the specific surface area of the flour and the degree of starch damage. A greater amount of damaged starch granules improves flour water absorption, which increases the water holding capacity (Kweon et al., 2014 ). The characteristics of flour, such as water absorption, conversion of starch by enzymes, damaged starch content, and baking quality, are improved by flour particle size (Alsberg and Griffing, 1925 ). The particle size distribution data of the individual flours are reported in Table 4 . Table 4 Percentage particle sizes of the individual flours µm Rice Ragi Black gram Cowpea 40 91.95 84.50 60.09 70.48 60 85.23 71.15 56.77 63.77 100 74.50 53.47 52.82 56.55 150 65.42 43.71 48.34 49.42 The majority of the flour particles had a sieve size less than 150 µm. Table 4 shows that 70.48%, 60.09%, 84.50% and 91.95% of the flour in the 40 µm fraction was produced from cowpea, black gram, ragi, and rice, respectively. The lowest percentage was reported for flour (49.42–65.42%) in the 150 µm fraction. An alteration in the particle size distribution of raw materials has an effect on the hydration properties. A larger particle size results in heterogeneous hydration of the particles and the formation of large dough lumps (Martens et al., 2010 ), which leads to uneven drying and white specks. The incorporation of food gums into flour mixtures has the potential to improve textural characteristics. Gums improve the pasting behavior and granular structure of starch during the cooking and baking of food (Christianson et al., 1974 ). They form gels and exhibit colloidal appearances in aqueous systems. Gums hydrates to yield viscosity or dispersion in cold or hot water (Scanlon et al., 1988 ). The gum attributes to the pasting viscosity changes in starch molecules when the starch dispersion is heated in the presence of gums. Table 5 Percentage particle sizes of the individual flours Particle size (µm) F 1 + AG F 2 + AG F 3 + AG F 1 -AG F 2 -AG F 3 -AG 40 77.33 77.16 74.89 74.52 76.68 74.50 60 68.55 68.83 67.40 64.03 67.16 66.05 100 56.52 57.46 57.32 51.48 56.11 56.40 150 47.20 48.30 48.45 42.07 47.50 48.55 Table 5 reports the particle size distributions of the flour samples produced from the different formulations. A greater percentage of flour (74.89–77.33%) was in the 40 µm fraction in the composite flour with acacia gum. The lowest percentage was reported for flour (47.20-48.45%) in the 150 µm fraction. The particle size distribution was lower for the formulations without acacia gum than for the formulations with acacia gum. Physical properties play a major role in the behavioral analysis of products during processing. The particle size is inversely proportional to the bulk density (Omimawo and Akubor, 2012 ). The variation in bulk density is mainly due to the variance in the particle size of the flours. In the food industry, the porosity (bulk density) of a product impacts the nature of the packaging material needed, the package design, and the application of the product in wet processing (Kinsella, 1981 ). The bulk density (g/cm3) is the measurement of the density of flour without the interference of any compression. The individual flour bulk density ranged from 0.600 g/cm3 to 0.800 g/cm3. The maximum bulk density of rice flour (0.800 g/cc) was reported compared to that of ragi flour (0.714 g/cc) and cowpea flour (0.696 g/cc), and the lowest bulk density was reported for black-gram flour (0.600 g/cm3) (Fig. 1 ). The present study showed that bulk density is influenced by the original moisture content and particle size of the flours. The incorporation of acacia gum into flour increased the bulk density of the composite flour. The highest bulk density of flour suggested its suitability for use in food preparations. In contrast, low bulk density would be beneficial in the formulation of complementary foods (Akpata and Akubor, 1999 ). Therefore, the high bulk density of the composite flour in the present study suggested that this material is suitable for use as a thickener in food products; subsequently, it helps to decrease paste thickness, which is a significant feature in convalescent and child feeding. The bulk density considerably improved with an increase in the assimilation of black-gram and cowpea flour in formulations without acacia gum. An increase in the bulk density after mechanically tapping the container with the sample results in an increase in the tap density. This signifies random dense packing of the sample. Figure 1 shows the tap density of the individual and composite flour. The tap density of individual flours ranged from 0.59–0.78. A greater tap density of rice flour (0.78 g/cc) was found. This is due to the density, size, and surface properties of the flour sample (Iwe et al., 2016 ). The lower tapped density of black g (0.59 g/cc) indicates the noncohesive properties of the material. A higher tapped density is appropriate for packaging, and a larger amount of material can be packed inside a constant unit volume (Van Toan and Anh, 2018 ). Similar studies on yellow-fleshed cassava flour have been reported (Falade et al., 2019 ). The tap density of the formulations without acacia gum ranged from 0.70–0.77 g/cm 3 . The tap density was found to increase with increasing pulse flour percentage. The maximum tap density was detected for F 1 + AG (0.78 g/cm 3 ), which was similar to that of F 3 -AG (0.77 g/cm 3 ), followed by F 3 + AG (0.74 g/cm 3) . The capacity of starch molecules to hold water within their structure through hydrogen bonding is the swelling capacity (SC) (Ahmad et al., 2016 ). SC plays a vital role in the manufacturing and retention of the structure of bakery products. The SC is the maximum volume a flour sample attains due to the absorption of water. This water absorption continued until the formation of a colloidal suspension. The increase in volume stops when intermolecular forces present among swollen molecules prevent water absorption (Adetuyi et al., 2009 ). The particle size, varietal differences, and processing methods also affect the swelling capacity of flour (Samsher, 2013 ). Figure 2 shows the comparison of the SC of individual flour with that of the composite flour. The swelling power of the different flour samples ranged from 15.00 to 20.0 ml. The maximum reading was recorded for cowpea (20.0 ml), followed by black (19.50 ml) and ragi flour (16.50 ml). The lowest value was recorded for rice flour (15.0 ml). Figure 2 clearly shows that the maximum swelling power was detected for F 3 -AG (25.00 ml); however, the lowest swelling power was detected for F 1 -AG (16.00 ml). An increasing trend was noted in the case of the formulation without acacia gum. In the case of the formulation with acacia gum, there was a decreasing trend from F 1 + AG (20.00 ml) to F 3 + AG (18.00 ml). Furthermore, an increase in temperature causes leakage of amylose and acacia, leading to the formation of films around the granules, which inhibits swelling. The swelling capacity of the composite flour was strongly affected by the proportion of cowpea flour due to pregelatinization resulting in a high starch content. Acacia gum may inhibit water absorption by limiting the water availability available to starch, thus reducing the swelling-promoting effect of the formulations. The color values of the individual and composite flours were estimated by CIELAB color values, where L* represents lightness, a ∗ indicates redness, and b ∗ indicates yellowness. The color parameters of the individual flours and blends of composite flours are shown in Table 6 in terms of L*, a*, and b*. The L* values of the individual flours ranged between 70.76 and 89.57. The L* value of the composite flour blend (F 3 -AG to F 1 -AG) decreased from 81.70-77.29. Similarly, the L* value of the composite flour blend with acacia gum (F 3+ AG to F 1+ AG) decreased from 81.93–77.31. There was no significant difference between the L* values of the composite flour blends with and without acacia gum. Table 6 Color characteristics of individual and composite flour Color values Flours L* white a* green b* blue Rice 89.57 ± 0.11 -0.45 ± 0.02 11.34 ± 0.06 Ragi 70.76 ± 0.12 5.18 ± 0.02 29.24 ± 0.11 Black gram 89.10 ± 0.66 -0.26 ± 0.02 14.09 ± 0.49 Cowpea 88.38 ± 0.52 0.08 ± 0.06 15.20 ± 0.33 F 1 + AG 77.31 ± 0.33 3.02 ± 0.18 22.63 ± 0.53 F 2 + AG 78.85 ± 1.15 2.57 ± 0.10 21.09 ± 1.11 F 3 + AG 81.93 ± 0.25 1.62 ± 0.04 18.12 ± 0.10 F 1 -AG 77.29 ± 0.64 2.94 ± 0.12 22.43 ± 0.75 F 2 -AG 78.63 ± 0.35 2.37 ± 0.02 21.02 ± 0.38 F 3 -AG 81.70 ± 0.33 1.67 ± 0.02 18.53 ± 0.31 Similarly, a significant difference was not observed in the redness and yellowness color values of the two flours, with and without gum. The values are presented in Table 6 . The a* values of the flour were positive, ranging from 1.67 to 3.02. However, the b* values of the flour were found to be positive, ranging from 18.53 to 22.63. The alteration in the color value is due to the polyphenolic pigments in the pericarp, aleuronic layer and endosperm region. 3.2. Functional properties The solubility of proteins is the percentage of nitrogen in a protein product that is in the soluble state under specific conditions. To improve the efficacy of the use of raw and composite flours in various food products, the protein solubility of the flours was evaluated in water and 0.5 M NaCl extract at pH 7.0. Table 7 Protein solubility of native and composite flours Flours Protein soluability (%) Water, pH 7.0 0.5 M NaCl, pH 7.0 Rice 18.83 ± 3.23 7.80 ± 0.16 Ragi 239.42 ± 8.41 11.52 ± 0.17 Black gram 45.86 ± 2.73 45.35 ± 5.00 Cowpea 32.68 ± 2.98 83.26 ± 1.00 F 1 + AG 118.63 ± 4.09 7.17 ± 0.09 F 2 + AG 91.18 ± 8.64 11.68 ± 0.16 F 3 + AG 143.72 ± 2.05 11.59 ± 0.28 F 1 -AG 147.88 ± 1.08 8.64 ± 0.91 F 2 -AG 151.13 ± 1.08 10.96 ± 0.14 F 3 -AG 138.31 ± 10.52 13.56 ± 0.21 The influence of water and NaCl at pH 7.0 on the protein solubility of the raw and composite flour is presented in Table 7 . The highest protein solubility (239.42 ± 8.41%) was recorded for the ragi, followed by the black gram (45.86 ± 2.73) in water. However, the protein solubility of cowpea flour decreased in water (32.68 ± 2.98) followed by rice flour (18.83 ± 3.23). Moreover, there was no difference in the protein solubility of black blood in water or NaCl solution. The highest protein solubility (83.26 ± 1.00%) was recorded for cowpea flour, followed by black g (45.86 ± 2.73 in NaCl). A minimum solubility of 7.80 ± 0.16% was observed for the rice flour in the 0.5 mM NaCl solution. The results showed that there was a decrease in protein solubility in the presence of NaCl compared to that in the presence of water extract in formulations with and without acacia gum. However, the protein solubility of these three formulations was greater than that of raw flour, except for that of ragi flour. Compared with formulations with gum, formulations without gum have been reported to have the highest protein solubility. F 2 -AG showed the highest protein solubility (151.13 ± 1.08) in water, followed by F 1 -AG and F 3 -AG, with solubilities of 147.88 ± 1.08 and 138.31 ± 10.52, respectively. F 3 + AG showed the maximum protein solubility (143.72 ± 2.05). The water absorption capacity reflects the amount of water absorbed and retained by the flour. The type of protein, amino acid composition, and protein polarity and hydrophobicity affect the water and oil absorption capacity (Chandra and Samsher, 2013 ). Additionally, a deviation in the amylose/amylopectin ratio also contributes to alterations in the water and oil absorption capacity of flour (Chandra et al., 2015 ). High carbohydrate content increases the WAC of flour due to its hydrophilic constituents, which enable it to bind additional water (Mbaeyi, 2005 ). Table 8 shows the water absorption capacities of the raw flour and its composite flours, which are influenced by the flour constituents and their relationships. Table 8 Water and oil absorption capacities of individual flours Flours Rice Ragi Black gram Cowpea Water absorption capacity (%) 112.05 ± 0.85 130.77 ± 1.19 320.57 ± 0.84 83.97 ± 0.65 Water solubility index (g/100 g) 1.19 ± 0.01 3.88 ± 0.11 13.42 ± 0.79 28.94 ± 0.64 Oil absorption capacity (%) 65.04 ± 1.35 68.52 ± 3.35 63.21 ± 0.69 65.64 ± 0.14 The water absorption capacity was highest for black g of flour (320.57 ± 0.84%) and lowest for cowpea flour (83.97 ± 0.65%). The maximum water absorption values were attributed to the higher content of starch and fiber (Klunklin and Savage, 2018 ). A high protein content tends to improve water absorption (Patil and Arya, 2017 ). In the present study, a good association was established between water absorption and protein content in black-gram flour. A higher protein content in black-gram flour leads to increased water absorption capacity. The water solubility index (g/100 g) was greatest for cowpea (28.94 ± 0.64), followed by blackberry (13.42 ± 0.79). The major chemical component affecting OAC is protein, which is composed of both hydrophilic and hydrophobic parts. Nonpolar amino acid side chains can form hydrophobic interactions with the hydrocarbon chains of lipids. The oil absorption capacity of flour is determined by physical binding of proteins to fat through capillary attraction. The maximum OAC reflects the enhanced hydrophobicity of the proteins in the flours, which results in more nonpolar amino acids being transferred to the fat and enhanced hydrophobicity via the absorption of oil. OAC enhances the shelf life of sausages (Akinyede and Amoo, 2009 ). The ragi flours had the highest oil absorption capacity (68.52 ± 3.35%) because they retain the flavor and enhance the mouthfeel in foods. With other flours, the oil absorption capacity ranged between 63.21 ± 0.69 and 65.64 ± 0.14%. (Di Cairano et al., 2020 ) reported no significant difference in the oil absorption capacity of gluten-free flour. Similar observations were made for rice, cowpea and black-gram flour. However, for the composite flour, F 2 -AG had the highest WAC (%) (135.74 ± 1.80), followed by F 2 + AG (126.73 ± 1.08) (Fig. 3 ). These findings suggested that water absorption was affected by the addition of rice flour. This difference might be due to the molecular structure of the rice starch, which initiates water absorption, as reflected by the increase in the WAC and decrease in the proportion of black-gram flours. The observed variation in the different flours may be due to differences in protein concentration, degree of interaction with water and conformational changes (Butt and Rizwana, 2010 ). The WSI increased from F 1 + AG to F 3 + AG with acacia gum. This difference may be due to the increase in the concentration of cowpea flour from F 1 to F 3 . Similar trends were observed both with and without acacia gum. The increase in the WAC of formulations with acacia gum might be due to the ability of gum to absorb water in its interrelated network and interaction with starch granules. These results were attributed to structural modifications resulting from the assimilation of gum to allow additional absorption of water through hydrogen bonding (Ognean et al., 2006 ). The formulations with acacia gum exhibited the highest oil absorption capacity compared to the formulations without gum. With flour formulations, F 2 + AG had the highest oil absorption capacity (66.71 ± 0.82%), followed by F 1 + AG (65.90 + 1.20%). The lowest percentage was reported for F 1 -AG (53.34 ± 0.39%). The results indicate that the OAC capacity of acacia gum tended to increase compared to that of the flours without acacia gum. The amount of interfacial region that can be formed by a protein reflects the foam capacity of the protein (Fennama, 1996 ). Foam formation occurs when colloidal gas bubbles surround a liquid or solid. The foaming and emulsion activities are shown in Table 9 . Table 9 Foaming capacity and emulsion activity of individual flours Rice Ragi Black gram Cowpea Foaming capacity (%) 0.80 ± 0.00 4.00 ± 0.00 20.00 ± 0.00 32.00 ± 0.00 Foaming stability (%) 0.00 ± 0.00 60.00 ± 0.00 70.00 ± 0.00 52.50 ± 0.00 Emulsion activity (%) 4.41 ± 0.00 4.62 ± 0.00 44.78 ± 0.00 42.03 ± 0.00 Emulsion stability (%) 33.33 ± 0.00 33.33 ± 0.00 40.00 ± 0.00 34.48 ± 0.00 The foaming capacity (FC) and foaming stability (FS) of the different flours ranged from 0.80 to 23.00% and from 0.00 to 70.00%, respectively. The highest foam capacity was observed for cowpea flour (32.00%), black-gram flour (20.00%), and the lowest for rice (0.80%). Foam stability (FS) is the ability of proteins to stabilize against mechanical stresses and gravitational forces (Fennama, 1996 ). The highest FS was detected for black-gram flour (70.00%), followed by ragi flour (60.00%) and cowpea flour (52.50%), and the lowest was detected for rice flour (0.00%). Proteins can alleviate emulsions by creating electrostatic repulsions on the surface of oil droplets (Kaushal et al., 2012 ). The EA and ES of the individual flours are tabulated in Table 9 . The emulsion activity (EA) of the different flours ranged from 4.41 to 44.78%. The maximum EA was observed for black-gram flour (44.78%). The emulsion stability (ES) of the different flours ranged from 33.33 to 40.00%. The maximum ES was shown for black-gram flour (40.00%), followed by cowpea flour (34.48%), and the lowest was shown for rice and ragi flour (33.33%). The FC and FS of the composite flours improved with increasing combination ratio of the different flours. There was an inverse relationship between the foam capacity and foam stability. Samples with maximum foaming ability might form large air bubbles enclosed by a thin flexible protein film. These air bubbles can easily collapse and subsequently decrease the foam stability (Jitngarmkusol et al., 2008 ). The functional properties of the blends will vary according to the component of the blend. Figure 4 shows the percentages of FC, FS, EA and ES in the different formulations with and without acacia gum. The foam capacity of the different flour formulations ranged from 11.47 to 15.20%. The FC of the F 3 + AG group (15.20%) was greater than that of the other formulations. The highest foam capacity was observed for F 2 + AG (13.07%). FS was found to improve when blended with cowpea and black-gram flour. However, FS was more common in F 2 -AG (88.55%), followed by F 2 + AG (80.58%). The least amount of FS was observed for F 1 -AG (60.63%). The same pattern was found for formulations with and without acacia gum. The highest EA was observed for F 1 + AG (42.05%), followed by F 2 + AG (40.58%). The emulsion stability (ES) of the composite flours varied from 12.91 to 24.00%. Rigid globular protein molecules are highly resistant to mechanical deformation. Cohesive films are formed by the absorption of these globular proteins. This in turn increases the emulsion stability (Graham and Phillips, 1980 ). All the composite flours exhibited relatively good emulsion activity. The EA and ES of the flours are shown in Fig. 4 . The emulsion activity (EA) of the different composite flours ranged between 29.77 and 42.05%. The maximum EA was observed for F 1 + AG (42.05%). The emulsion stability (ES) of the different composite flours ranged from 41.89 to 59.18%. The highest ES was observed for flour F 2 + AG (59.18%), followed by F 3 + AG (50.18%), and the lowest was observed for F 1 + AG (41.89%). The least gelation concentration (LGC) is the lowest concentration of protein at which the gel retains its structure even in the inverted position. The difference in the gelling properties can be attributed to the differences in the constituent ratios of the pulse/legume flours, such as carbohydrates, proteins, and lipids. The interactions among the above constituents play a substantial role in determining their functional properties. The LGC data for the raw and composite flours are given in Table 10 . The raw flour (rice and cowpea) samples exhibited 100% gelation at a concentration of 25%. However, black-gram and ragi flour showed 100% gelation at a concentration of 30%. Table 10 Effect of flour concentration on the least gelation capacity Conc. (%, w/v) Samples Rice Cowpea Black gram Ragi F 1 -AG F 2 -AG F 3 -AG F 1 -AG F 3 + AG F 3 + AG 2 - - - - - - - - - - 5 - - - - - - - - - - 10 + + + + + + + + + + 15 ++ + + + + + + + + + 20 ++ + + + + + ++ ++ ++ ++ 25 +++ +++ ++ ++ +++ +++ +++ +++ +++ +++ 30 +++ +++ +++ +++ +++ +++ +++ +++ +++ +++ Each value represents the mean of three determinations. -= no gelation, += 50% gelation, ++ = 75% gelation, +++ = complete gelation. F 1 -A = formulation 1 without gum; F 2 -A = formulation 2 without gum; F 3 -A = formulation 3 without gum; F 1 + A = formulation 1 with gum; F 2 + A = formulation 2 with gum; F 3 + A = formulation 1 with gum. The composite flours exhibited 100% gelation at 25% and 30% concentrations of flour. The composite flours formed a gel at a significantly lower concentration (25%) or a higher concentration (30%). 3.3. Bioactive compounds and their antioxidant activity Whole grains are rich sources of phenolic acids. These phenolic acids have antimicrobial, anticancer, antioxidant and anti-inflammatory potential. Phenolic acids exhibit antioxidant properties due to the presence of an aromatic phenolic ring (Rice-Evans et al., 1996 ). Polyphenols are involved in defense mechanisms against biotic and abiotic stresses. Phenolic compounds were extracted from the individual and composite flours using a previously described method (Chethan and Malleshi, 2007 ). The bioactive components, such as polyphenols, flavonoids, and proanthocyanidins, were extracted from the flours with methanolic HCl, and the antioxidant activity was assessed. Table 11 Phenolic indices and biological activity of individual and composite flours Samples Total phenolic content (TPC, GAE/100 g) Total flavonoid content (TFC) Proanthocyanidin content (PAC) DPPH (%) Rice 4.07 ± 0.23 0.76 ± 0.05 0.47 ± 0.09 81.74 ± 0.50 Ragi 47.69 ± 1.68 23.66 ± 0.60 5.49 ± 0.19 82.83 ± 0.61 Black gram 9.14 ± 0.54 1.43 ± 0.16 1.25 ± 0.10 77.96 ± 1.21 Cowpea 6.52 ± 0.59 2.08 ± 0.17 2.18 ± 0.19 76.48 ± 1.05 F 1 + AG 28.43 ± 0.41 13.72 ± 0.47 6.70 ± 0.23 72.99 ± 1.41 F 2 + AG 24.16 ± 0.29 10.70 ± 1.15 5.12 ± 0.18 73.09 ± 0.34 F 3 + AG 17.77 ± 1.08 7.50 ± 0.28 6.04 ± 0.21 69.31 ± 1.69 F 1 -AG 27.61 ± 2.10 9.62 ± 0.37 3.22 ± 0.37 81.77 ± 0.68 F 2 -AG 23.61 ± 0.81 10.43 ± 0.70 2.83 ± 0.24 72.09 ± 2.58 F 3 -AG 18.07 ± 1.71 6.87 ± 0.43 2.69 ± 0.21 74.41 ± 0.79 The TPC, TFC and PAC of the individual and composite flour samples are shown in Table 11 . Ragi flour possessed the maximum TPC (47.69 ± 1.68), followed by black-gram (9.14 ± 0.54) and cowpea (6.52 ± 0.59) flours. TFC and PAC were also found to be more abundant in ragi flour. This is because the anthocyanin contents in colored seed coats are very high (Sreerama et al., 2012 ). It was reported that grains with a dark-colored pigment and pericarp had higher soluble phenolic fractions than those with a light color (Chandrasekara and Shahidi, 2010 ). In this study, a ragi and husk were used for flour preparation. In contrast, the soluble phenolic extracts of the finger millet in this study had greater TPC and TFC than did those of the other grain flours. Significant variations were noted in the phenolic indices of flour subjected to composite flour preparation. The formulation with acacia gum had a greater PAC than that without acacia gum. The PAC values for F 1 + AG and F 3 + AG were greater than that for F 2 + AG. In formulations without acacia gum, the PAC decreased (range 2.69 ± 0.21 to 3.22 ± 0.37). The TPC, TFC and PAC in the composite flours were significantly different from those in the control flours. However, there was no significant difference observed with the addition of acacia gum to the composite flour. However, a decreasing trend is observed. This may be due to a decrease in the content of ragi flour from F 1 to F 3 . TPC and TFC were greater in F 1 + AG, at 28.43–17.77 mg/g and 13.72–7.50 mg/g, respectively. Similar observations were made in the absence of acacia gum. PAC was greater in the composite flour (6.40–6.70 mg/g) than in the individual flours (0.47–5.49 mg/g). The antioxidant activities of the phenolic extracts obtained from the raw and composite flour samples were studied for their radical scavenging capacities. Natural antioxidants help increase the shelf life of food products without affecting nutritional or sensory qualities (Rajalakshmi and Narasimhan, 1996 ). The DPPH radical scavenging activities of the raw flour and composite flour extracts are presented in Table 11 . The DPPH radical scavenging activities of the raw flours (76.48 ± 1.05 to 82.83 ± 0.61%) were slightly greater than those of their composite flours (69.31 ± 1.69 to 81.77 ± 0.68%), but the differences were not significant. The addition of acacia gum improved the functional properties of the final product. The addition of gums results in increased dietary fiber and decreased caloric value by diluting the moisture content (Rodge et al., 2012 ). 4. CONCLUSION The results revealed that the blends of cereals, pulses and millet flour have good nutritional quality. The incorporation of legume flours into the formulation improved the protein quality considerably. Compared with those in the F1-AG and F2 + AG groups, the protein content in the S1-AG and S2 + AG groups was increased. Even though nutritional and functional properties have been studied, advanced examinations of the amino acid profile, protein and starch digestibility and mineral bioavailability of the product are mandatory for its commercial application. DECLARATIONS CRediT authorship contribution statement Honganoor Puttananjaiah Mohankumari contributed to the design of the experiments and methodology of this study and wrote and reviewed the manuscript. Vadaguru Viswanath executed the experiments. All the authors have read and approved the final manuscript. Declaration of competing interests All the authors declare that they have no competing interests. Availability of Data The data will be made available upon request. Acknowledgments The authors express sincere thanks to the Director, CSIR-Central Food Technological Research Institute, Mysore, India, for their constant encouragement and for providing the facility to carry out the work. 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Is globalization healthy: a statistical indicator analysis of the impacts of globalization on health. Glob. Health . 6(1), 1-14. Mbaeyi, I.E., 2005. Production and evaluation of breakfast cereal using pigeon-pea (Cajanus cajan) and sorghum (Sorghum bicolor L.) An M. Sc. Food Science and Technology, Faculty of Agrcultural University of Nigeria, Nsukka 167. Mughal, M.H., 2019. Ameliorative role of composite flour against human maladies. Biomedical J. Sci. Tech. Res . 18(4), 13804-13811. Noorfarahzilah, M., Lee, J., Sharifudin, M., Mohd Fadzelly, A., Hasmadi, M., 2014. Applications of composite flour in development of food products. Int Food Res J . 21(6). Ognean, C., Darie, N., Ognean, M., 2006. Hypocaloric and Hypoglucidic Food–Technological Trends. Alma Mater Publishing House, Sibiu. OKAKA, J.C., POTTER, N.N., 1977. Functional and storage properties of cowpea powder‐wheat flour blends in breadmaking. J. Food Sci. Technol .. 42(3), 828-833. Oladunmoye, O., Akinoso, R., Olapade, A., 2010. Evaluation of some physical–chemical properties of wheat, cassava, maize and cowpea flours for bread making. J Food Qual . 33(6), 693-708. Omimawo, I., Akubor, P., 2012. Food chemistry (integrated approach with biochemcial background). Agbowo, Ibadan, Nigeria. Patil, S.P., Arya, S.S., 2017. Nutritional, functional, phytochemical and structural characterization of gluten-free flours. J. Food Meas. Charact . 11, 1284-1294. Patterson, C.A., Curran, J., Der, T., 2017. Effect of processing on antinutrient compounds in pulses. Cereal Chem. 94(1), 2-10. Pradeep, P., Sreerama, Y.N., 2015. Impact of processing on the phenolic profiles of small millets: Evaluation of their antioxidant and enzyme inhibitory properties associated with hyperglycemia. Food Chem. 169, 455-463. Price, M.L., Van Scoyoc, S., Butler, L.G., 1978. A critical evaluation of the vanillin reaction as an assay for tannin in sorghum grain. J. Food Meas. Charact . 26(5), 1214-1218. Rajalakshmi, D., Narasimhan, S., 1996. Food antioxidants: Sources and methods of evaluation: 65-83. Food Antioxidants-Technological, Toxicological, and Health Perspectives. Marcel Dekker, Inc., New York, 512p. Renzetti, S., Dal Bello, F., Arendt, E.K., 2008. Microstructure, fundamental rheology and baking characteristics of batters and breads from different gluten-free flours treated with a microbial transglutaminase. J.Cereal Sci. 48(1), 33-45. Rice-Evans, C.A., Miller, N.J., Paganga, G., 1996. Structure-antioxidant activity relationships of flavonoids and phenolic acids. Free Radic Biol Med. 20(7), 933-956. Rodge, A., Sonkamble, S., Salve, R., Hashmi, S.I., 2012. Effect of hydrocolloid (guar gum) incorporation on the quality characteristics of bread. J. Food Sci. Technol . 3(2). Rosland Abel, S., Yusof, Y., Chin, N., Chang, L., Mohd Ghazali, H., Manaf, Y., 2020. Characterization of physicochemical properties of gum arabic powder at various particle sizes. Food Res. 4, 107-115. Samsher, S.C., 2013. Assessment of functional properties of different flours. Afr. J. Agric. Res 8(38), 4849-4852. Scanlon, M., Dexter, J., BILIDERIS, C., 1988. Particle-size related physical properties of flour produced by smooth roll reduction of hard red spring wheat farina. Cereal Chem. 65(6), 486-492. Seth, D., Badwaik, L.S., Ganapathy, V., 2015. Effect of feed composition, moisture content and extrusion temperature on extrudate characteristics of yam-corn‒rice based snack food. J. Food Sci. Technol . 52(3), 1830-1838. Shi, L., Arntfield, S.D., Nickerson, M., 2018. Changes in levels of phytic acid, lectins and oxalates during soaking and cooking of Canadian pulses. Food Res Int, 107, 660-668. Shittu, T., Raji, A., Sanni, L., 2007. Bread from composite cassava-wheat flour: I. Effect of baking time and temperature on some physical properties of bread loaf. Food Res Int. 40(2), 280-290. Singleton, V.L., Orthofer, R., Lamuela-Raventós, R.M., 1999. [14] Analysis of total phenols and other oxidation substrates and antioxidants by means of folin-ciocalteu reagent. Methods Enzymol . 299, 152-178. Smith, A.P., Wilds, A., 2009. Effects of cereal bars for breakfast and mid-morning snacks on mood and memory. Int J Food Sci Nutr. 60(sup4), 63-69. Sosulski, F., 1962. The centrifuge method for determining flour absorption in hard red spring wheats. Cereal Chem. 39, 344-350. Sreerama, Y.N., Takahashi, Y., Yamaki, K., 2012. Phenolic antioxidants in some Vigna species of legumes and their distinct inhibitory effects on α‐glucosidase and pancreatic lipase activities. J Food Sci . 77(9), C927-C933. Tharanathan, R., Mahadevamma, S., 2003. Grain legumes—a boon to human nutrition. Trends Food Sci Technol. 14(12), 507-518. Van Toan, N., Anh, V.Q., 2018. Preparation and improved quality production of flour and the made biscuits from purple sweet potato. J. Food Nutr. 4, 1-14. Waleed, A., Mahdi, A.A., Mohammed, J.K., Noman, A., Wang, L., 2017. Nutritional Properties of Composite Flour Based on Whole Wheat Flour and Sensory Evaluation of its Biscuits. Xu, B.J., Chang, S., 2007. A comparative study on phenolic profiles and antioxidant activities of legumes as affected by extraction solvents. J. Food Sci. 72(2), S159-S166. Yatsumatsu, K., Sawada, K., Moritaka, S., 1972. Whipping and emulsifying properties of soybean products. Appl. Biol. Chem . 36, 719-727. Additional Declarations The authors declare no competing interests. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-4281813","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":292597500,"identity":"3e1a88c3-b38e-4909-90ba-137f84e17aae","order_by":0,"name":"Viswanath Vaduguru","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"CSIR-CFTRI","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Viswanath","middleName":"","lastName":"Vaduguru","suffix":""},{"id":292597850,"identity":"44f15f99-d258-4e8a-bcfb-9643ac29f83a","order_by":1,"name":"Mohankumari Honganoor Puttananjaiah","email":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAZAAAAAyAQMAAABI0h/eAAAABlBMVEX///8AAABVwtN+AAAACXBIWXMAAA7EAAAOxAGVKw4bAAAA9UlEQVRIiWNgGAWjYFACHiA+AGIwNj5gsGFgYIMISxClpdmAIc2AJC0MbBIgLQSBbnvvwc8FZw5H888+3FbxI+FPPh8D78OHPxgs8nBpMTtzLll6xo3DuTPOJbbd7EkwsGxjYDc25mGQKMap5UaOgTTPh8O5DWcY224z/jAwYGNgY5MG+iWxAbcW498gLfOBWooZEsBa2H/+wK/FTJoH6LANQC3MUC1swDDBo+XMGTNrnjPpuRvPMDZL9iQYG7AxszFL8xjg0XK8x/g2zzHr3Hln2B9++JEgZyDf3sb48UdFHU4tWAAziCAifkbBKBgFo2AU4AYAVRhRx3XjR2MAAAAASUVORK5CYII=","orcid":"","institution":"CSIR-CFTRI","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Mohankumari","middleName":"Honganoor","lastName":"Puttananjaiah","suffix":""}],"badges":[],"createdAt":"2024-04-17 12:13:51","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":{"humanSubjects":false,"vertebrateSubjects":true,"conflictsOfInterestStatement":false,"humanSubjectEthicalGuidelines":false,"humanSubjectConsent":false,"humanSubjectClinicalTrial":false,"humanSubjectCaseReport":false,"vertebrateSubjectEthicalGuidelines":true},"doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-4281813/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-4281813/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":55002274,"identity":"5112d0bb-51b5-451d-b421-25d356ddd7ca","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2024-04-19 18:39:26","extension":"png","order_by":1,"title":"Figure 1","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"figure","size":40100,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eBulk and tap density of individual flours and their composition\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"floatimage1.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-4281813/v1/b0cab90bd90c03011a4058e6.png"},{"id":55002275,"identity":"63173d1c-2935-4502-8736-1c8462d5931f","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2024-04-19 18:39:26","extension":"png","order_by":2,"title":"Figure 2","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"figure","size":31181,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eSwelling capacity of individual flours and their compositions.\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"floatimage2.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-4281813/v1/1d5289218ec4a5265f41908c.png"},{"id":55002277,"identity":"e39297e8-c016-4e6d-80c0-f17fb1aaeccc","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2024-04-19 18:39:26","extension":"png","order_by":3,"title":"Figure 3","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"figure","size":39132,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eWater and oil absorption capacity of the formulations\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"floatimage3.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-4281813/v1/39b306ce870c4551f82214b6.png"},{"id":55002276,"identity":"fb16452f-6e0d-4a9a-bf6d-25c4b6077cef","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2024-04-19 18:39:26","extension":"png","order_by":4,"title":"Figure 4","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"figure","size":35366,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFoaming capacity and emulsion activity of the formulations\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"floatimage4.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-4281813/v1/473067869879f882c9928314.png"},{"id":55004774,"identity":"2a7ef507-d269-47de-b24b-ff1769d455d6","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2024-04-19 18:47:27","extension":"pdf","order_by":0,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":797960,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"manuscript.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-4281813/v1/506d0665-828e-4059-a215-be63d18007cb.pdf"}],"financialInterests":"The authors declare no competing interests.","formattedTitle":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eImplication of acacia gum for cereal-legume-millet-based composite flour: Nutritional and functional attributes and biological activity\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e","fulltext":[{"header":"1. INTRODUCTION","content":"\u003cp\u003eComposite flours play an important role as substitutes for wheat flour. Composite flour is a blend of various protein-enriched nutrients and starches. Different cereals and pulses are used to create composite flour. Composite flour helps to boost the nourishing value and value of bakery products (Chandra et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR17\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2015\u003c/span\u003e). The addition of a composite flour results in high protein, ash, and amino acid contents. The functional characteristics of composite foods are evidently improved with the augmentation of flour samples by the addition of swelling capacity, bulk density and emulsion stability. The multigrain is frequently used in confectionaries and products such as breakfast cereals and has a progressive effect on the texture and taste of products because of its enhanced health benefits and public acceptability. The invention and ingestion of functional composite flour improve the nutritional characteristics and dietary quality of the flour (Waleed et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR74\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2017\u003c/span\u003e) and (Noorfarahzilah et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR49\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2014\u003c/span\u003e). The quality of the product is influenced by the proportional composition of the composites and their flour properties (Oladunmoye et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR52\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2010\u003c/span\u003e). Composite flour also reduces the import of wheat flour and boosts the use of domestic agricultural products for flour preparation (Hugo et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR34\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2000\u003c/span\u003e). Composite flour also has a role in weight control, cardiac attack, reducing diabetes, and improving the digestive system. In addition, composite flour significantly decreases lipoprotein cholesterol, serum lipid levels, serum glycosylated protein levels and glycosylated albumin levels (Mughal, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR48\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2019\u003c/span\u003e). Conversely, it also benefits people suffering from degenerative disease associated with their current environment and lifestyle. Composite flour contains an extensive amount of phenolic acids and plays an imperative role in preventing cancer, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe objective of this investigation was to study the effect of acacia gum on nutritional status, functional properties, and biological activity of multigrain composite flour. The use of cereals, legumes, and millet as sustainable sources of functional composite flours is increasing. Nonalutilization of wheat in flour is intended to alleviate gluten-related celiac disease. Cereals (rice, amaranth, tigernut), legumes (African oil bean, soybeans, Kinger\u0026rsquo;s groundnut, bambara groundnut) and millet (ragi, proso, little) have been consumed as reliable foundations of composite flours (Awolu et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR11\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2016\u003c/span\u003e); (Awolu et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR10\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2015\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eComposite flours have been used extensively and successfully in the production of baked foods. There are some studies on the use of cereal-tube-legume combinations for the preparation of various products (Oladunmoye et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR52\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2010\u003c/span\u003e). (Oladunmoye et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR52\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2010\u003c/span\u003e) reported that the quality of a product is strongly influenced by the proportional composition of the different composites and their flour properties.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eIn many African populations, cereal‒legume-based flour is used as a basic staple food in the form of porridge for breakfast and as a weaning food for children. Cereals, such as rice, wheat, sorghum, and maize, are sources of calories, minerals, vitamins, fats, oils, and complex carbohydrates but have low lysine and protein contents (Famakin et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR28\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2016\u003c/span\u003e). Conversely, legumes such as soybeans, green grams, and cowpea plants are moderately rich in proteins, dietary fiber, vitamins and minerals (Tharanathan and Mahadevamma, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR72\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2003\u003c/span\u003e). Currently, except for Sudan and Ethiopia, sub-Saharan African countries have become absolutely dependent on imported wheat (Eleazu et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR26\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2014\u003c/span\u003e). The development of celiac disease (gluten-sensitive enteropathy) is another challenge related to wheat consumption. The use of composite flour helps to neutralize such complications. Composite flour with numerous flours succeeded from native crops has been highlighted in many low-income countries, with or without wheat flour (Shittu et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR67\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2007\u003c/span\u003e); (Renzetti et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR59\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2008\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe presence of antinutrients (phytate, oxalate, and tannins) is one of the key complications of plant-based flours that limits their utilization (Kathirvel and Kumudha, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR38\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2011\u003c/span\u003e). Even though tannins and phytate help reduce blood glucose and insulin levels in response to starchy foods, oxalate is a slight pro-oxidant that is toxic because it generates free radicals (Kumar et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR44\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2010\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eAntinutrients affect the bioaccessibility of calcium, zinc, iron (Kruger et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR43\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2013\u003c/span\u003e) and proteins (Gibson et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR32\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2010\u003c/span\u003e). The soaking and heat processing method helps in eliminating these antinutritional factors (Patterson et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR55\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2017\u003c/span\u003e). The soaking and cooking processes effectively decrease the levels of lectins and oxalate in common beans and soybeans (Shi et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR66\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2018\u003c/span\u003e). This hampers the exploitation of ingested nutrients, which in turn decreases their nutritive value (Gemede et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR31\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2016\u003c/span\u003e). Food with low mineral availability leads to malnutrition, anemia, osteoporosis, and impairment of child growth (Akhter et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR4\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2012\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eGumArabia is broadly used as an encapsulating material, foaming agent and emulsifier in food industries (Rosland Abel et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR62\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2020\u003c/span\u003e). They are added to food products as thickening and gelling agents. They are used to improve mouth feel and change the viscosity of solution due to their high polymeric nature and their interactions between polymer chains when they are dispersed (Smith and Wilds, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR69\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2009\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eTo succeed in the effective application and promotion of cereal‒legume-based composite flours containing acacia gum, rice, ragi, cowpea and black gram flours were tested. This study was carried out to determine the effect of acacia gum in flour formulations. In this study, these grains were selected because of their high carbohydrate, protein and fiber contents. In the case of the ragi, the whole ragi and husk were used. Blending whole grains that are rich in protein, dietary fiber, and minerals in staple food items is considered beneficial for health (Indrani et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR35\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2011\u003c/span\u003e). Three formulations were prepared with and without acacia gum.\u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"2. MATERIALS AND METHODS","content":"\u003cdiv id=\"Sec3\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.1. Chemicals and reagents\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eGallic acid, Folin-Ciocalteu reagent, bovine albumin serum and CBB G-250 were purchased from Sigma‒Aldrich Chemical Co. (St. Louis, MO). Methanol, petroleum ether and other chemicals were procured from SRL. Other analytical grade chemicals and reagents were purchased from Qualigens Fine Chemicals (Mumbai, India) and Nice Chemicals (Kochi, India). Pure Millipore water was obtained with a Milli-Q system (Simplicity UV, ultrapure, type-1 water). Acacia gum was obtained from Sigma Aldrich.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec4\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.2. Sample collection and storage\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eGrains such as Rice, Ragi, Cowpea and Black Gram were purchased from supermarkets in Mysuru of Karnataka and stored at 4\u0026deg;C. All the seeds were purchased from a single batch. All the seeds were size-sorted and used for the preparation of flour.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec5\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.3. Methodology\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec6\" class=\"Section3\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.3.1. Sorting and dehulling of cowpea and black gram\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eFlour production involves cleaning, sorting and grading, dehulling, and milling into flour. Since seed quality is important, seed sorting is performed to remove shriveled and broken seeds from full seeds. The cleaned medium-sized seeds were dehulled in a dehusker (mini versatile dhal mill, designed and developed by the Central Food Technological Research Institute, Mysore, India). Similarly, the ragi and rice were also cleaned. All the grains were milled into complete flour.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec7\" class=\"Section3\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.3.2. Composite flour formulations\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe three different intervals of rice, ragi, cowpea, and black-gram flour were used for the composite flours with and without gum (Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003e). Acacia gum (1.0% of the total weight) was blended with the composite flours.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eRice, ragi, cowpea, and black grams were powdered and sieved through 60 mesh sieves. The three different proportions of rice, ragi, cowpea, and black-gram flour (Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003e) were used in the preparation of composite flours. Composite flours were prepared with and without acacia gum (AG, 1.0%, by total weight). Acacia gum was substituted for ragi flour. Rice and ragi were blended with cowpea flour, black gram flour, and acacia gum by using a blender.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab1\" border=\"1\"\u003e \u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 1\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eComposite flour formulations\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/caption\u003e \u003ccolgroup cols=\"6\"\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c5\" colnum=\"5\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c6\" colnum=\"6\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003cthead\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eFormulations\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003cth align=\"left\" colspan=\"5\" nameend=\"c6\" namest=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eFlours and acacia gum (%)\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/th\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/thead\u003e \u003ctbody\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eRice\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eRagi\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eBlack gram\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eCowpea\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eAcacia gum\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eF\u003csub\u003e1\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e20\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e49\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e10\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e20\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eF\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e25\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e39\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e5\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e30\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eF\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e30\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e24\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e5\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e40\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e1\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eF\u003csub\u003e1\u003c/sub\u003e-AG\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e20\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e50\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e10\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e20\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eF\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e-AG\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e25\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e40\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e5\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e30\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003ctr\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e \u003cp\u003eF\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e-AG\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e30\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e25\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e5\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e40\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e \u003cp\u003e0\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/td\u003e \u003c/tr\u003e \u003c/tbody\u003e \u003c/colgroup\u003e \u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eF\u003csub\u003e1\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;formulation 1 with acacia gum; F\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;formulation 2 with acacia gum; F\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;formulation 3 with acacia gum; F\u003csub\u003e1\u003c/sub\u003e-AG\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;formulation 1 without acacia gum; F\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e-AG\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;formulation 2 without acacia gum; F\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e-AG\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;formulation 3 without acacia gum; AG\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;acacia gum.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe composite flour samples were stored in airtight containers for further analysis. The samples (from the individual flour and composite flour) were analyzed for proximate, physical, functional, bioactive compound, and antioxidant properties.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec8\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.4. Nutritional attributes\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec9\" class=\"Section3\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.4.1. Proximate analysis\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe proximate composition was determined according to the AOAC method. The moisture content of the individual and composite flour samples was analyzed for moisture, ash, crude protein, crude fat, crude fiber, and carbohydrate content using the standard method of AOAC (2005). The proximate compositions of the individual and composite flour samples were analyzed. The percentage of carbohydrate content was obtained by subtracting the sum of the percentages of moisture, crude protein, ash, and fat from 100. The caloric value (kcal/100 g) was calculated using Atwater\u0026rsquo;s conversion factors based on the caloric coefficients corresponding to the protein (4 kcal/g), carbohydrate (4 kcal/g), and fat (9 kcal/g) contents. All the experiments were carried out in triplicate.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec10\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.5. Physical properties/Technological parameters\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003ePhysical property analyses, such as particle size analysis, bulk density, tap density and color characterization, were carried out for the individual flours and formulations.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec11\" class=\"Section3\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.5.1. Particle size analysis\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eDohulled cotyledons ground into flour were passed through a 60 mesh BSS sieve by the mechanical sieving method. The individual and composite flours were subjected to a particle size analyzer. The particle size of the flour was measured via laser diffraction using a Microtrac Blue wave model 55796.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec12\" class=\"Section3\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.5.2. Bulk density - loose bulk density (LBD) and packed bulk density (PBD)\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe bulk density (BD) of the samples was determined by the gravimetric method defined by (Amandikwa et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR8\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2015\u003c/span\u003e). Approximately 10 g of sample was placed in a 25 ml calibrated measuring cylinder, and the volume was noted as the loose volume. The bottom of the cylinder tapped constantly on a firm laboratory bench until it reached a constant volume, which was the packing volume. The LBD and PBD were calculated as the proportion of the weight of the sample to the volume of the sample before and after tapping, respectively.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec13\" class=\"Section3\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.5.3. Tap density:\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eTap density was measured according to previous methods (Deshpande and Poshadri, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR24\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2011\u003c/span\u003e). The sample was packed to 20 ml in a measuring cylinder with a 50 ml capacity and tapped 5\u0026ndash;10 times. A total of 20 ml of sample was weighed.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec14\" class=\"Section3\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.5.4. Swelling capacity (SC)\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe swelling capacity of the samples was determined according to previous procedures (OKAKA and POTTER, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR51\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1977\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec15\" class=\"Section3\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.5.5. Color\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe color of the samples was measured by a Hunter Lab (Labscan XE, Reston, Virginia) color measuring system by measuring the degree of lightness (L*), redness (a*), yellowness (b*) and the total deviation in color ∆E from the standard. Measurements were made at random locations on the surface of the sample, and lightness (L*) values were noted. The color values of the flour and formulations were determined in accordance with the CIELAB color measurement system (Lab Scan XE Hunter Lab Instruments, Virginia, USA).\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec16\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.6. Bioactive compounds and antioxidant activity\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec17\" class=\"Section3\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.6.1. Quantification of total phenolic compound (TPC), total flavonoid (TFC) and total proanthocyanidin (PAC) contents\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe phenolic compounds were extracted from the defatted flours and their formulations using 80% aqueous methanol containing 1% HCl (1:50 w/v) by refluxing in a thermostated water bath at 55\u0026deg;C for 60 min (x3 times) followed by centrifugation (Pradeep and Sreerama, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR56\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2015\u003c/span\u003e). The combined supernatants were evaporated under reduced pressure and used to determine the total phenolic content. The TPC was measured by the method of (Singleton et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR68\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1999\u003c/span\u003e), with modifications as described by (Xu and Chang, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR75\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2007\u003c/span\u003e). The total phenolic content in each extract was expressed as mg gallic acid equivalents (GAE) per gram of defatted flour.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe total flavonoid content (TFC) was determined by an aluminum chloride calorimetric assay (Kim et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR40\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2003\u003c/span\u003e), in which the absorbance was measured at 510 nm and is expressed as milligrams of catechin equivalent (CE) per gram of defatted flour.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe proanthocyanidin (PC) content was determined by the vanillin-HCl method (Price et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR57\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1978\u003c/span\u003e) and is expressed as milligrams of catechin per gram of defatted flour.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec18\" class=\"Section3\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.6.2. Assessment of in vitro antioxidant potential\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe antioxidant activity of flour and formulations was determined through estimation of free radical scavenging activities in methanol extracts using 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) (Brand-Williams et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR14\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1995\u003c/span\u003e). The absorbance was measured at 517 nm against methanol as a blank. The DPPH radical scavenging activity was calculated by a Trolox standard curve and is expressed as micromoles of Trolox equivalents (TE) per gram of defatted flour. The test was carried out in triplicate, and the results were calculated as follows:\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eActivity (%)\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;A\u003csub\u003econtrol\u003c/sub\u003e-A\u003csub\u003etest\u003c/sub\u003e/A\u003csub\u003econtrol\u003c/sub\u003e \u0026times; 100\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003ewhere A\u003csub\u003etest\u003c/sub\u003e is the absorbance of the sample and A\u003csub\u003econtrol is\u003c/sub\u003e the absorbance of the methanolic DPPH solution.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec19\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.7. Functional properties\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec20\" class=\"Section3\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.7.1. Protein solubility (nitrogen solubility) in water and NaCl\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe soluble nitrogen content of the flours and formulations was determined in distilled water (pH 7) and 0.5 N NaCl (pH 7) (Boye et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR12\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2010\u003c/span\u003e). The protein content in the supernatant was determined by the (Bradford, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR13\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1976\u003c/span\u003e) method. The percentage of soluble protein was calculated from a standard graph using BSA and was expressed as mg/g flour sample.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec21\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.8. Hydration properties\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec22\" class=\"Section3\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.8.1. Water and oil absorption capacity (WAC)\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe water absorption capacities of the flours and their formulations were determined by the method described by (Anderson et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR9\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1969\u003c/span\u003e). A total of 0.5 g (10% (w/v)) of sample suspension was vortexed and kept at room temperature for 30 min followed by centrifugation at 3000 rpm for 10 min. The sediment was separated from the supernatant and weighed along with the tube. The resulting supernatant was evaporated, and the dissolved solid weight was determined.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe water solubility index (WSI) and water absorption index (WAI) were determined according to the methods developed by (Seth et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR65\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2015\u003c/span\u003e). The WSI of the samples was determined from the amount of dried solids recovered by evaporating the supernatant from the flour water absorption capacity. The WAI of the samples was calculated by the weight of the pellet after removal of the supernatant per unit weight of original dry sample.\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe oil absorption capacity (OAC) was assessed by centrifuging a known amount of sample saturated with sunflower oil (density 0.9 g/ml) (Sosulski, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR70\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1962\u003c/span\u003e). The amount of oil retained was expressed as the difference in the weights of the sample before and after equilibration with oil.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec23\" class=\"Section3\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.8.2. Foaming and emulsifying properties\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe foaming capacity (FC) and foaming stability (FS) were determined according to the methods of (Chau and Cheung, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR19\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1998\u003c/span\u003e). Foaming capacity was expressed as the increase in percent of foam volume measured after 30 seconds of whipping in a blender. Foam stability was determined by measuring the FC after the samples had stood for 30 minutes. The emulsion activity (Ea) and emulsion stability (Es) were assessed by the methods of (Yatsumatsu et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR76\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1972\u003c/span\u003e). The heights of the emulsified layers as a percentage of the total heights of the material in the unheated and heated tubes were used for calculating emulsifying activity and stability, respectively.\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003cdiv id=\"Sec24\" class=\"Section3\"\u003e \u003ch2\u003e2.8.3. Least gelation concentration\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe least gelation concentration (LGC) was determined by the method described by (Coffman and Garcia, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR23\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1977\u003c/span\u003e). Appropriate amounts of sample were weighed into test tubes. The LGC is the concentration when the sample from the inverted test tube does not fall or slip off. The gels were characterized by the absence of a (-), a mobile gel (+), a firm gel (++) or a very firm gel (+++).\u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003cb\u003eStatistical analysis\u003c/b\u003e \u003c/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe results of the above experiments are expressed as the mean\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;standard deviation (SD, n\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;3).\u003c/p\u003e \u003c/div\u003e \u003c/div\u003e"},{"header":"3. Results and discussion","content":"\u003cp\u003eA whole grain kernel consists of the endosperm, germ, and bran. The outer coating of bran is rich in fiber, and lignans, minerals, vitamins and phytochemicals (phenolic acids and phytosterol compounds) are abundant in the inner germ. Pulses are part of a balanced and healthy diet with an important role in the prevention of illnesses, diabetes, cancer and heart-related diseases. Pulses are rich in fiber, are a low-fat source of protein and have a low glycemic index. The grinding procedure is a unit process for reducing the size of the material. Grinding plays a major role in the food industry. Size reduction plays a major role in many food processes and is accomplished by applying diverse forces to produce particles with definite sizes and shapes. All the raw materials were dehulled by a versatile dhal mill to separate the germ, cotyledon, and husk. The raw materials were powdered and passed through a 60 mesh BSS sieve.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe proximity of a sample plays an imperative role in understanding the nutrients in the sample. In addition to its nutritional value, protein content also provides important technological indications. The protein content provides an indicator of the quantity of water absorbed for a certain level of dough consistency and aids in predicting the total time required for development, stability and softening. A constant percentage of acacia gum (1.0%) was used in the formulations due to its function as a thickening agent and stabilizer to complete the characterization of gluten-free flour (Gambuś et al., \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2007\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe moisture content of food materials before grinding is a significant parameter for ensuring good flowability. For various food materials, the initial moisture content plays a major role in determining the size distribution of particles and the grinding time. Controlling the moisture content via pretreatment steps such as drying or adding moisture is imperative before grinding.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe approximate compositions of the individual flours are shown in Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e2\u003c/span\u003e. The moisture contents of the rice flour, ragi flour, black-gramed flour, and cowpea flour were 5.40%, 11.72%, 6.43% and 6.23%, respectively. The protein content was greater in black-gram-old and cowpea flour.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\n\u003ctable id=\"Tab2\" border=\"1\"\u003e\u003ccaption\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 2\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eProximate composition of individual flours\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003c/caption\u003e\n\u003cthead\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRice\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRagi\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBlack gram\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCowpea\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003c/thead\u003e\n\u003ctbody\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMoisture\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e5.40\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.49\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e11.72\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.69\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e6.43\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.60\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e6.23\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.20\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAsh\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e0.53\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.10\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e2.54\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.04\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e3.33\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.06\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e3.61\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.03\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFat\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e0.72\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.06\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e1.34\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.07\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e1.28\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.02\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e1.32\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.09\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eProtein\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e8.41\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.19\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e6.05\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.65\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e23.13\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.30\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e22.22\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.18\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCarbohydrates\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e84.94\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.53\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e78.13\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;1.08\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e65.82\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.42\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e66.56\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.31\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCalories\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e379.89\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e348.78\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e367.32\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e367.00\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003c/tbody\u003e\n\u003c/table\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTogether with moisture, protein, fiber, and sodium content, fat content is one of the five key parameters used in assessing food quality. Cowpea and black-gram vegetables have higher protein and ash contents than rice and the ragi. Cowpea is rich in protein, fat and ash, with 22.22%, 1.38% and 3.61%, respectively. The ash content measures the amount of minerals present within a food.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eA mixture of different flours from legumes, cereal plants or millet plants was used as the composite flour. It is produced to fulfill specific nutrients and functional characteristics. The final product, with respect to its functional and physicochemical properties and health benefits, mainly depends on the beneficial effects of the use of composite flour.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe moisture contents of the composite flours with and without acacia gum are reported in Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003e.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\n\u003ctable id=\"Tab3\" border=\"1\"\u003e\u003ccaption\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 3\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eComposite flour composition\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003c/caption\u003e\n\u003cthead\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eF\u003csub\u003e1\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eF\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eF\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eF\u003csub\u003e1\u003c/sub\u003e-AG\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eF\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e-AG\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eF\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e -AG\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003c/thead\u003e\n\u003ctbody\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMoisture\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e8.87\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.30\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e7.94\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.93\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e6.38\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.12\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e10.36\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.18\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e9.85\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.12\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e9.53\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.10\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAsh\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e2.49\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.15\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e2.53\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.20\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e2.54\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.10\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e2.45\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.06\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e2.48\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.19\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e2.69\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.25\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFat\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e1.49\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.12\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e1.41\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.11\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e1.43\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.10\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e1.37\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.01\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e1.14\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.03\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e1.07\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.01\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eProtein\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e13.12\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.93\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e12.53\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.16\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e14.65\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.06\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e11.53\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.84\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e13.22\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;1.06\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e15.47\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.76\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCarbohydrates\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e73.93\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.67\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e75.63\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;1.01\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e74.31\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;1.00\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e74.29\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.62\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e73.30\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.96\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e71.24\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;1.02\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCalories\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e361.65\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e365.31\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e368.72\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e355.61\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e356.37\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e356.52\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003c/tbody\u003e\n\u003c/table\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe moisture content varies depending upon the blending ratio. It is clearly shown that there is a decrease in the percentage of moisture content in the composite flours as the amount of ragi flour decreased from 49\u0026thinsp;\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;24% (Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003e). The percentage of moisture content in the composite flour was also strongly affected by the combination of the two materials with acacia gum. The highest moisture content was observed for F\u003csub\u003e1\u003c/sub\u003e-AG (10.36%), and the lowest was observed for F\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG (6.38%). This difference may be due to the absorption of moisture by Acacia gum and cowpea.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAsh content was lower in flour samples with acacia gum than in those without acacia gum. The ash content is an indicator of the nonorganic compound content in food. The ash content varied from 2.45\u0026ndash;2.69% in the different flour formulations. The composite flour F\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e-AG had the highest ash content (2.69%), implying a higher mineral content.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe protein content increased (12.53\u0026ndash;14.65%) with increasing percentage of pulsed flour in the formulations with acacia gum. The protein content was greater in the composite flour without acacia gum (15.47%) than in that with acacia gum (14.65%). The ash and protein contents were greater in the F3-AG group. This could essentially be due to the higher content of protein in cowpea and black-gram cowpea. (Abioye et al., \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2011\u003c/span\u003e) also reported that the higher protein content in composite flour was because of the high protein content in soybeans.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe highest fat content was observed for the F\u003csub\u003e1\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG flour (1.49%), and the lowest was observed for the F\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e-AG flour (1.07%). The fat content of the composite flour with acacia gum was greater than that of the flour without acacia gum. This difference may be due to the absorption of moisture by acacia gum. The study showed that the moisture content of the composite flours decreased with decreasing proportion of ragi flour from 49\u0026ndash;24%. Similar trends were reported by (Kaushal et al., \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2012\u003c/span\u003e). The authors used blends of taro, rice, and pigeon pea flour, which resulted in a reduction in the moisture content of the composite flours. The protein content of F\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e-AG was 15.47%, followed by that of F3\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG (14.65%), which was \u0026gt;\u0026thinsp;13%, meeting the desired protein levels (Chillo et al., \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2008\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv id=\"Sec26\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003e3.1. Physical properties/technological parameters\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe flour particle size degrades the water holding capacity of flour by affecting the specific surface area of the flour and the degree of starch damage. A greater amount of damaged starch granules improves flour water absorption, which increases the water holding capacity (Kweon et al., \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2014\u003c/span\u003e). The characteristics of flour, such as water absorption, conversion of starch by enzymes, damaged starch content, and baking quality, are improved by flour particle size (Alsberg and Griffing, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1925\u003c/span\u003e). The particle size distribution data of the individual flours are reported in Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e4\u003c/span\u003e.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\n\u003ctable id=\"Tab4\" border=\"1\"\u003e\u003ccaption\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 4\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePercentage particle sizes of the individual flours\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003c/caption\u003e\n\u003cthead\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u0026micro;m\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRice\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRagi\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBlack gram\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCowpea\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003c/thead\u003e\n\u003ctbody\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e40\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e91.95\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e84.50\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e60.09\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e70.48\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e60\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e85.23\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e71.15\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e56.77\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e63.77\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e100\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e74.50\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e53.47\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e52.82\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e56.55\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e150\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e65.42\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e43.71\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e48.34\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e49.42\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003c/tbody\u003e\n\u003c/table\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe majority of the flour particles had a sieve size less than 150 \u0026micro;m. Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e4\u003c/span\u003e shows that 70.48%, 60.09%, 84.50% and 91.95% of the flour in the 40 \u0026micro;m fraction was produced from cowpea, black gram, ragi, and rice, respectively. The lowest percentage was reported for flour (49.42\u0026ndash;65.42%) in the 150 \u0026micro;m fraction.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAn alteration in the particle size distribution of raw materials has an effect on the hydration properties. A larger particle size results in heterogeneous hydration of the particles and the formation of large dough lumps (Martens et al., \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2010\u003c/span\u003e), which leads to uneven drying and white specks.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe incorporation of food gums into flour mixtures has the potential to improve textural characteristics. Gums improve the pasting behavior and granular structure of starch during the cooking and baking of food (Christianson et al., \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1974\u003c/span\u003e). They form gels and exhibit colloidal appearances in aqueous systems. Gums hydrates to yield viscosity or dispersion in cold or hot water (Scanlon et al., \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1988\u003c/span\u003e). The gum attributes to the pasting viscosity changes in starch molecules when the starch dispersion is heated in the presence of gums.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\n\u003ctable id=\"Tab5\" border=\"1\"\u003e\u003ccaption\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 5\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePercentage particle sizes of the individual flours\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003c/caption\u003e\n\u003cthead\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eParticle size (\u0026micro;m)\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eF\u003csub\u003e1\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eF\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eF\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eF\u003csub\u003e1\u003c/sub\u003e-AG\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eF\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e-AG\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eF\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e -AG\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003c/thead\u003e\n\u003ctbody\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e40\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e77.33\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e77.16\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e74.89\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e74.52\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e76.68\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e74.50\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e60\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e68.55\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e68.83\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e67.40\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e64.03\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e67.16\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e66.05\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e100\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e56.52\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e57.46\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e57.32\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e51.48\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e56.11\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e56.40\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e150\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e47.20\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e48.30\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e48.45\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e42.07\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e47.50\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e48.55\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003c/tbody\u003e\n\u003c/table\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTable\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e5\u003c/span\u003e reports the particle size distributions of the flour samples produced from the different formulations. A greater percentage of flour (74.89\u0026ndash;77.33%) was in the 40 \u0026micro;m fraction in the composite flour with acacia gum. The lowest percentage was reported for flour (47.20-48.45%) in the 150 \u0026micro;m fraction. The particle size distribution was lower for the formulations without acacia gum than for the formulations with acacia gum.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePhysical properties play a major role in the behavioral analysis of products during processing. The particle size is inversely proportional to the bulk density (Omimawo and Akubor, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2012\u003c/span\u003e). The variation in bulk density is mainly due to the variance in the particle size of the flours. In the food industry, the porosity (bulk density) of a product impacts the nature of the packaging material needed, the package design, and the application of the product in wet processing (Kinsella, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1981\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe bulk density (g/cm3) is the measurement of the density of flour without the interference of any compression. The individual flour bulk density ranged from 0.600 g/cm3 to 0.800 g/cm3. The maximum bulk density of rice flour (0.800 g/cc) was reported compared to that of ragi flour (0.714 g/cc) and cowpea flour (0.696 g/cc), and the lowest bulk density was reported for black-gram flour (0.600 g/cm3) (Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe present study showed that bulk density is influenced by the original moisture content and particle size of the flours. The incorporation of acacia gum into flour increased the bulk density of the composite flour. The highest bulk density of flour suggested its suitability for use in food preparations. In contrast, low bulk density would be beneficial in the formulation of complementary foods (Akpata and Akubor, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1999\u003c/span\u003e). Therefore, the high bulk density of the composite flour in the present study suggested that this material is suitable for use as a thickener in food products; subsequently, it helps to decrease paste thickness, which is a significant feature in convalescent and child feeding. The bulk density considerably improved with an increase in the assimilation of black-gram and cowpea flour in formulations without acacia gum.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAn increase in the bulk density after mechanically tapping the container with the sample results in an increase in the tap density. This signifies random dense packing of the sample. Figure\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003e shows the tap density of the individual and composite flour. The tap density of individual flours ranged from 0.59\u0026ndash;0.78. A greater tap density of rice flour (0.78 g/cc) was found. This is due to the density, size, and surface properties of the flour sample (Iwe et al., \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2016\u003c/span\u003e). The lower tapped density of black g (0.59 g/cc) indicates the noncohesive properties of the material. A higher tapped density is appropriate for packaging, and a larger amount of material can be packed inside a constant unit volume (Van Toan and Anh, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2018\u003c/span\u003e). Similar studies on yellow-fleshed cassava flour have been reported (Falade et al., \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2019\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe tap density of the formulations without acacia gum ranged from 0.70\u0026ndash;0.77 g/cm\u003csup\u003e3\u003c/sup\u003e. The tap density was found to increase with increasing pulse flour percentage. The maximum tap density was detected for F\u003csub\u003e1\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG (0.78 g/cm\u003csup\u003e3\u003c/sup\u003e), which was similar to that of F\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e-AG (0.77 g/cm\u003csup\u003e3\u003c/sup\u003e), followed by F\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG (0.74 g/cm\u003csup\u003e3)\u003c/sup\u003e.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe capacity of starch molecules to hold water within their structure through hydrogen bonding is the swelling capacity (SC) (Ahmad et al., \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2016\u003c/span\u003e). SC plays a vital role in the manufacturing and retention of the structure of bakery products. The SC is the maximum volume a flour sample attains due to the absorption of water. This water absorption continued until the formation of a colloidal suspension. The increase in volume stops when intermolecular forces present among swollen molecules prevent water absorption (Adetuyi et al., \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2009\u003c/span\u003e). The particle size, varietal differences, and processing methods also affect the swelling capacity of flour (Samsher, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2013\u003c/span\u003e). Figure\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e2\u003c/span\u003e shows the comparison of the SC of individual flour with that of the composite flour. The swelling power of the different flour samples ranged from 15.00 to 20.0 ml. The maximum reading was recorded for cowpea (20.0 ml), followed by black (19.50 ml) and ragi flour (16.50 ml). The lowest value was recorded for rice flour (15.0 ml).\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFigure \u003cspan class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e2\u003c/span\u003e clearly shows that the maximum swelling power was detected for F\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e-AG (25.00 ml); however, the lowest swelling power was detected for F\u003csub\u003e1\u003c/sub\u003e-AG (16.00 ml). An increasing trend was noted in the case of the formulation without acacia gum. In the case of the formulation with acacia gum, there was a decreasing trend from F\u003csub\u003e1\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG (20.00 ml) to F\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG (18.00 ml). Furthermore, an increase in temperature causes leakage of amylose and acacia, leading to the formation of films around the granules, which inhibits swelling.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe swelling capacity of the composite flour was strongly affected by the proportion of cowpea flour due to pregelatinization resulting in a high starch content. Acacia gum may inhibit water absorption by limiting the water availability available to starch, thus reducing the swelling-promoting effect of the formulations.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe color values of the individual and composite flours were estimated by CIELAB color values, where L* represents lightness, a\u003csup\u003e\u0026lowast;\u003c/sup\u003e indicates redness, and b\u003csup\u003e\u0026lowast;\u003c/sup\u003e indicates yellowness. The color parameters of the individual flours and blends of composite flours are shown in Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e6\u003c/span\u003e in terms of L*, a*, and b*. The L* values of the individual flours ranged between 70.76 and 89.57. The L* value of the composite flour blend (F\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e-AG to F\u003csub\u003e1\u003c/sub\u003e-AG) decreased from 81.70-77.29. Similarly, the L* value of the composite flour blend with acacia gum (F\u003csub\u003e3+\u003c/sub\u003eAG to F\u003csub\u003e1+\u003c/sub\u003eAG) decreased from 81.93\u0026ndash;77.31. There was no significant difference between the L* values of the composite flour blends with and without acacia gum.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\n\u003ctable id=\"Tab6\" border=\"1\"\u003e\u003ccaption\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 6\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eColor characteristics of individual and composite flour\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003c/caption\u003e\n\u003cthead\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003cth colspan=\"3\" align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eColor values\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFlours\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eL* white\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ea* green\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eb* blue\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003c/thead\u003e\n\u003ctbody\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eRice\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e89.57\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.11\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e-0.45\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.02\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e11.34\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.06\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eRagi\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e70.76\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.12\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e5.18\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.02\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e29.24\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.11\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eBlack gram\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e89.10\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.66\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e-0.26\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.02\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e14.09\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.49\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eCowpea\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e88.38\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.52\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e0.08\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.06\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e15.20\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.33\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eF\u003c/strong\u003e\u003csub\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e1\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u003cstrong\u003e+\u0026thinsp;AG\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e77.31\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.33\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e3.02\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.18\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e22.63\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.53\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eF\u003c/strong\u003e\u003csub\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e2\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u003cstrong\u003e+\u0026thinsp;AG\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e78.85\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;1.15\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e2.57\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.10\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e21.09\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;1.11\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eF\u003c/strong\u003e\u003csub\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e3\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u003cstrong\u003e+\u0026thinsp;AG\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e81.93\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.25\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e1.62\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.04\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e18.12\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.10\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eF\u003c/strong\u003e\u003csub\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e1\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/sub\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e-AG\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e77.29\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.64\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e2.94\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.12\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e22.43\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.75\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eF\u003c/strong\u003e\u003csub\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e2\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/sub\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e-AG\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e78.63\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.35\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e2.37\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.02\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e21.02\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.38\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eF\u003c/strong\u003e\u003csub\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e3\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/sub\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e-AG\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e81.70\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.33\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e1.67\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.02\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e18.53\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.31\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003c/tbody\u003e\n\u003c/table\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSimilarly, a significant difference was not observed in the redness and yellowness color values of the two flours, with and without gum. The values are presented in Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e6\u003c/span\u003e. The a* values of the flour were positive, ranging from 1.67 to 3.02. However, the b* values of the flour were found to be positive, ranging from 18.53 to 22.63. The alteration in the color value is due to the polyphenolic pigments in the pericarp, aleuronic layer and endosperm region.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv id=\"Sec27\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003e3.2. Functional properties\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe solubility of proteins is the percentage of nitrogen in a protein product that is in the soluble state under specific conditions. To improve the efficacy of the use of raw and composite flours in various food products, the protein solubility of the flours was evaluated in water and 0.5 M NaCl extract at pH 7.0.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\n\u003ctable id=\"Tab7\" border=\"1\"\u003e\u003ccaption\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 7\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eProtein solubility of native and composite flours\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003c/caption\u003e\n\u003cthead\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFlours\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003cth colspan=\"2\" align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eProtein soluability (%)\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003c/thead\u003e\n\u003ctbody\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWater, pH 7.0\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e0.5 M NaCl, pH 7.0\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRice\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e18.83\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.23\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e7.80\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.16\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRagi\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e239.42\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;8.41\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e11.52\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.17\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBlack gram\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e45.86\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.73\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e45.35\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;5.00\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCowpea\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e32.68\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.98\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e83.26\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;1.00\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eF\u003csub\u003e1\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e118.63\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;4.09\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e7.17\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.09\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eF\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e91.18\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;8.64\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e11.68\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.16\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eF\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e143.72\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.05\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e11.59\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.28\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eF\u003csub\u003e1\u003c/sub\u003e-AG\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e147.88\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;1.08\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e8.64\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.91\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eF\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e-AG\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e151.13\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;1.08\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e10.96\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.14\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eF\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e-AG\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e138.31\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;10.52\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e13.56\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.21\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003c/tbody\u003e\n\u003c/table\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe influence of water and NaCl at pH 7.0 on the protein solubility of the raw and composite flour is presented in Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e7\u003c/span\u003e. The highest protein solubility (239.42\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;8.41%) was recorded for the ragi, followed by the black gram (45.86\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.73) in water. However, the protein solubility of cowpea flour decreased in water (32.68\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.98) followed by rice flour (18.83\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.23). Moreover, there was no difference in the protein solubility of black blood in water or NaCl solution. The highest protein solubility (83.26\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;1.00%) was recorded for cowpea flour, followed by black g (45.86\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.73 in NaCl). A minimum solubility of 7.80\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.16% was observed for the rice flour in the 0.5 mM NaCl solution.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe results showed that there was a decrease in protein solubility in the presence of NaCl compared to that in the presence of water extract in formulations with and without acacia gum. However, the protein solubility of these three formulations was greater than that of raw flour, except for that of ragi flour. Compared with formulations with gum, formulations without gum have been reported to have the highest protein solubility. F\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e-AG showed the highest protein solubility (151.13\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;1.08) in water, followed by F\u003csub\u003e1\u003c/sub\u003e-AG and F\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e-AG, with solubilities of 147.88\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;1.08 and 138.31\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;10.52, respectively. F\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG showed the maximum protein solubility (143.72\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.05).\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe water absorption capacity reflects the amount of water absorbed and retained by the flour. The type of protein, amino acid composition, and protein polarity and hydrophobicity affect the water and oil absorption capacity (Chandra and Samsher, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2013\u003c/span\u003e). Additionally, a deviation in the amylose/amylopectin ratio also contributes to alterations in the water and oil absorption capacity of flour (Chandra et al., \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2015\u003c/span\u003e). High carbohydrate content increases the WAC of flour due to its hydrophilic constituents, which enable it to bind additional water (Mbaeyi, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2005\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTable 8 shows the water absorption capacities of the raw flour and its composite flours, which are influenced by the flour constituents and their relationships.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\n\u003ctable id=\"Tab8\" border=\"1\"\u003e\u003ccaption\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 8\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWater and oil absorption capacities of individual flours\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003c/caption\u003e\n\u003cthead\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003cth colspan=\"4\" align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFlours\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003c/thead\u003e\n\u003ctbody\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRice\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRagi\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBlack gram\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCowpea\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWater absorption capacity (%)\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e112.05\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.85\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e130.77\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;1.19\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e320.57\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.84\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e83.97\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.65\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWater solubility index (g/100 g)\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e1.19\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.01\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e3.88\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.11\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e13.42\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.79\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e28.94\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.64\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOil absorption capacity (%)\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e65.04\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;1.35\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e68.52\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.35\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e63.21\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.69\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e65.64\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.14\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003c/tbody\u003e\n\u003c/table\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe water absorption capacity was highest for black g of flour (320.57\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.84%) and lowest for cowpea flour (83.97\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.65%). The maximum water absorption values were attributed to the higher content of starch and fiber (Klunklin and Savage, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2018\u003c/span\u003e). A high protein content tends to improve water absorption (Patil and Arya, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2017\u003c/span\u003e). In the present study, a good association was established between water absorption and protein content in black-gram flour. A higher protein content in black-gram flour leads to increased water absorption capacity. The water solubility index (g/100 g) was greatest for cowpea (28.94\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.64), followed by blackberry (13.42\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.79).\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe major chemical component affecting OAC is protein, which is composed of both hydrophilic and hydrophobic parts. Nonpolar amino acid side chains can form hydrophobic interactions with the hydrocarbon chains of lipids. The oil absorption capacity of flour is determined by physical binding of proteins to fat through capillary attraction. The maximum OAC reflects the enhanced hydrophobicity of the proteins in the flours, which results in more nonpolar amino acids being transferred to the fat and enhanced hydrophobicity via the absorption of oil. OAC enhances the shelf life of sausages (Akinyede and Amoo, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2009\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe ragi flours had the highest oil absorption capacity (68.52\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.35%) because they retain the flavor and enhance the mouthfeel in foods. With other flours, the oil absorption capacity ranged between 63.21\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.69 and 65.64\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.14%. (Di Cairano et al., \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2020\u003c/span\u003e) reported no significant difference in the oil absorption capacity of gluten-free flour. Similar observations were made for rice, cowpea and black-gram flour.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eHowever, for the composite flour, F\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e-AG had the highest WAC (%) (135.74\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;1.80), followed by F\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG (126.73\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;1.08) (Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003e). These findings suggested that water absorption was affected by the addition of rice flour. This difference might be due to the molecular structure of the rice starch, which initiates water absorption, as reflected by the increase in the WAC and decrease in the proportion of black-gram flours. The observed variation in the different flours may be due to differences in protein concentration, degree of interaction with water and conformational changes (Butt and Rizwana, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2010\u003c/span\u003e). The WSI increased from F\u003csub\u003e1\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG to F\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG with acacia gum. This difference may be due to the increase in the concentration of cowpea flour from F\u003csub\u003e1\u003c/sub\u003e to F\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e. Similar trends were observed both with and without acacia gum.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe increase in the WAC of formulations with acacia gum might be due to the ability of gum to absorb water in its interrelated network and interaction with starch granules. These results were attributed to structural modifications resulting from the assimilation of gum to allow additional absorption of water through hydrogen bonding (Ognean et al., \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2006\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe formulations with acacia gum exhibited the highest oil absorption capacity compared to the formulations without gum. With flour formulations, F\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG had the highest oil absorption capacity (66.71\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.82%), followed by F\u003csub\u003e1\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG (65.90\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;1.20%). The lowest percentage was reported for F\u003csub\u003e1\u003c/sub\u003e-AG (53.34\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.39%). The results indicate that the OAC capacity of acacia gum tended to increase compared to that of the flours without acacia gum.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe amount of interfacial region that can be formed by a protein reflects the foam capacity of the protein (Fennama, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1996\u003c/span\u003e). Foam formation occurs when colloidal gas bubbles surround a liquid or solid. The foaming and emulsion activities are shown in Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e9\u003c/span\u003e.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\n\u003ctable id=\"Tab9\" border=\"1\"\u003e\u003ccaption\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 9\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFoaming capacity and emulsion activity of individual flours\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003c/caption\u003e\n\u003cthead\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRice\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRagi\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBlack gram\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCowpea\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003c/thead\u003e\n\u003ctbody\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFoaming capacity (%)\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e0.80\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.00\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e4.00\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.00\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e20.00\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.00\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e32.00\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.00\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFoaming stability (%)\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e0.00\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.00\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e60.00\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.00\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e70.00\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.00\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e52.50\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.00\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEmulsion activity (%)\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e4.41\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.00\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e4.62\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.00\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e44.78\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.00\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e42.03\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.00\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEmulsion stability (%)\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e33.33\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.00\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e33.33\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.00\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e40.00\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.00\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e34.48\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.00\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003c/tbody\u003e\n\u003c/table\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe foaming capacity (FC) and foaming stability (FS) of the different flours ranged from 0.80 to 23.00% and from 0.00 to 70.00%, respectively. The highest foam capacity was observed for cowpea flour (32.00%), black-gram flour (20.00%), and the lowest for rice (0.80%). Foam stability (FS) is the ability of proteins to stabilize against mechanical stresses and gravitational forces (Fennama, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1996\u003c/span\u003e). The highest FS was detected for black-gram flour (70.00%), followed by ragi flour (60.00%) and cowpea flour (52.50%), and the lowest was detected for rice flour (0.00%).\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eProteins can alleviate emulsions by creating electrostatic repulsions on the surface of oil droplets (Kaushal et al., \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2012\u003c/span\u003e). The EA and ES of the individual flours are tabulated in Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e9\u003c/span\u003e. The emulsion activity (EA) of the different flours ranged from 4.41 to 44.78%. The maximum EA was observed for black-gram flour (44.78%). The emulsion stability (ES) of the different flours ranged from 33.33 to 40.00%. The maximum ES was shown for black-gram flour (40.00%), followed by cowpea flour (34.48%), and the lowest was shown for rice and ragi flour (33.33%).\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe\u003c/strong\u003e FC and FS of the composite flours improved with increasing combination ratio of the different flours. There was an inverse relationship between the foam capacity and foam stability. Samples with maximum foaming ability might form large air bubbles enclosed by a thin flexible protein film. These air bubbles can easily collapse and subsequently decrease the foam stability (Jitngarmkusol et al., \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2008\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe functional properties of the blends will vary according to the component of the blend. Figure\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e4\u003c/span\u003e shows the percentages of FC, FS, EA and ES in the different formulations with and without acacia gum. The foam capacity of the different flour formulations ranged from 11.47 to 15.20%. The FC of the F\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG group (15.20%) was greater than that of the other formulations. The highest foam capacity was observed for F\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG (13.07%). FS was found to improve when blended with cowpea and black-gram flour. However, FS was more common in F\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e-AG (88.55%), followed by F\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG (80.58%). The least amount of FS was observed for F\u003csub\u003e1\u003c/sub\u003e-AG (60.63%). The same pattern was found for formulations with and without acacia gum.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe highest EA was observed for F\u003csub\u003e1\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG (42.05%), followed by F\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG (40.58%). The emulsion stability (ES) of the composite flours varied from 12.91 to 24.00%.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRigid globular protein molecules are highly resistant to mechanical deformation. Cohesive films are formed by the absorption of these globular proteins. This in turn increases the emulsion stability (Graham and Phillips, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1980\u003c/span\u003e). All the composite flours exhibited relatively good emulsion activity. The EA and ES of the flours are shown in Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e4\u003c/span\u003e. The emulsion activity (EA) of the different composite flours ranged between 29.77 and 42.05%. The maximum EA was observed for F\u003csub\u003e1\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG (42.05%). The emulsion stability (ES) of the different composite flours ranged from 41.89 to 59.18%. The highest ES was observed for flour F\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG (59.18%), followed by F\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG (50.18%), and the lowest was observed for F\u003csub\u003e1\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG (41.89%).\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe least gelation concentration (LGC) is the lowest concentration of protein at which the gel retains its structure even in the inverted position. The difference in the gelling properties can be attributed to the differences in the constituent ratios of the pulse/legume flours, such as carbohydrates, proteins, and lipids. The interactions among the above constituents play a substantial role in determining their functional properties. The LGC data for the raw and composite flours are given in Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e10\u003c/span\u003e. The raw flour (rice and cowpea) samples exhibited 100% gelation at a concentration of 25%. However, black-gram and ragi flour showed 100% gelation at a concentration of 30%.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\n\u003ctable id=\"Tab10\" border=\"1\"\u003e\u003ccaption\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 10\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEffect of flour concentration on the least gelation capacity\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003c/caption\u003e\n\u003cthead\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003cth rowspan=\"2\" align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eConc. (%, w/v)\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003cth colspan=\"10\" align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSamples\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRice\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCowpea\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBlack gram\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRagi\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eF\u003csub\u003e1\u003c/sub\u003e-AG\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eF\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e-AG\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eF\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e-AG\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eF\u003csub\u003e1\u003c/sub\u003e-AG\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eF\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eF\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003c/thead\u003e\n\u003ctbody\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e2\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e-\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e-\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e-\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e-\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e-\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e-\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e-\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e-\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e-\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e-\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e5\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e-\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e-\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e-\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e-\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e-\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e-\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e-\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e-\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e-\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e-\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e10\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e+\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e+\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e+\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e+\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e+\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e+\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e+\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e+\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e+\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e+\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e15\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e++\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e+\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e+\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e+\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e+\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e+\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e+\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e+\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e+\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e+\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e20\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e++\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e+\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e+\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e+\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e+\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e+\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e++\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e++\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e++\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e++\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e25\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e++\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e++\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e30\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e+++\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003c/tbody\u003e\n\u003c/table\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEach value represents the mean of three determinations.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e-= no gelation, += 50% gelation, ++ = 75% gelation, +++ = complete gelation.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eF\u003csub\u003e1\u003c/sub\u003e-A\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;formulation 1 without gum; F\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e-A\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;formulation 2 without gum; F\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e-A\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;formulation 3 without gum; F\u003csub\u003e1\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;A\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;formulation 1 with gum; F\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;A\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;formulation 2 with gum; F\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;A\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;formulation 1 with gum.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe composite flours exhibited 100% gelation at 25% and 30% concentrations of flour. The composite flours formed a gel at a significantly lower concentration (25%) or a higher concentration (30%).\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv id=\"Sec28\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003e3.3. Bioactive compounds and their antioxidant activity\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhole grains are rich sources of phenolic acids. These phenolic acids have antimicrobial, anticancer, antioxidant and anti-inflammatory potential. Phenolic acids exhibit antioxidant properties due to the presence of an aromatic phenolic ring (Rice-Evans et al., \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1996\u003c/span\u003e). Polyphenols are involved in defense mechanisms against biotic and abiotic stresses.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePhenolic compounds were extracted from the individual and composite flours using a previously described method (Chethan and Malleshi, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2007\u003c/span\u003e). The bioactive components, such as polyphenols, flavonoids, and proanthocyanidins, were extracted from the flours with methanolic HCl, and the antioxidant activity was assessed.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\n\u003ctable id=\"Tab11\" border=\"1\"\u003e\u003ccaption\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 11\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePhenolic indices and biological activity of individual and composite flours\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003c/caption\u003e\n\u003cthead\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSamples\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTotal phenolic content (TPC, GAE/100 g)\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTotal flavonoid content\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e(TFC)\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eProanthocyanidin content (PAC)\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003cth align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eDPPH (%)\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/th\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003c/thead\u003e\n\u003ctbody\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRice\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e4.07\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.23\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e0.76\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.05\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e0.47\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.09\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e81.74\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.50\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRagi\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e47.69\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;1.68\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e23.66\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.60\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e5.49\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.19\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e82.83\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.61\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBlack gram\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e9.14\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.54\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e1.43\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.16\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e1.25\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.10\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e77.96\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;1.21\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCowpea\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e6.52\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.59\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e2.08\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.17\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e2.18\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.19\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e76.48\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;1.05\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eF\u003csub\u003e1\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e28.43\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.41\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e13.72\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.47\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e6.70\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.23\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e72.99\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;1.41\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eF\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e24.16\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.29\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e10.70\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;1.15\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e5.12\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.18\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e73.09\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.34\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eF\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e17.77\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;1.08\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e7.50\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.28\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e6.04\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.21\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e69.31\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;1.69\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eF\u003csub\u003e1\u003c/sub\u003e-AG\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e27.61\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.10\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e9.62\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.37\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e3.22\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.37\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e81.77\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.68\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eF\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e-AG\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e23.61\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.81\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e10.43\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.70\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e2.83\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.24\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e72.09\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.58\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"left\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eF\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e-AG\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e18.07\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;1.71\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e6.87\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.43\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e2.69\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.21\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\"\u0026plusmn;\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e74.41\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.79\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/td\u003e\n\u003c/tr\u003e\n\u003c/tbody\u003e\n\u003c/table\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe TPC, TFC and PAC of the individual and composite flour samples are shown in Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e11\u003c/span\u003e. Ragi flour possessed the maximum TPC (47.69\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;1.68), followed by black-gram (9.14\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.54) and cowpea (6.52\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.59) flours. TFC and PAC were also found to be more abundant in ragi flour. This is because the anthocyanin contents in colored seed coats are very high (Sreerama et al., \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2012\u003c/span\u003e). It was reported that grains with a dark-colored pigment and pericarp had higher soluble phenolic fractions than those with a light color (Chandrasekara and Shahidi, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2010\u003c/span\u003e). In this study, a ragi and husk were used for flour preparation. In contrast, the soluble phenolic extracts of the finger millet in this study had greater TPC and TFC than did those of the other grain flours.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSignificant variations were noted in the phenolic indices of flour subjected to composite flour preparation. The formulation with acacia gum had a greater PAC than that without acacia gum. The PAC values for F\u003csub\u003e1\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG and F\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG were greater than that for F\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG. In formulations without acacia gum, the PAC decreased (range 2.69\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.21 to 3.22\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.37).\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe TPC, TFC and PAC in the composite flours were significantly different from those in the control flours. However, there was no significant difference observed with the addition of acacia gum to the composite flour. However, a decreasing trend is observed. This may be due to a decrease in the content of ragi flour from F\u003csub\u003e1\u003c/sub\u003e to F\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e. TPC and TFC were greater in F\u003csub\u003e1\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG, at 28.43\u0026ndash;17.77 mg/g and 13.72\u0026ndash;7.50 mg/g, respectively. Similar observations were made in the absence of acacia gum. PAC was greater in the composite flour (6.40\u0026ndash;6.70 mg/g) than in the individual flours (0.47\u0026ndash;5.49 mg/g).\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe antioxidant activities of the phenolic extracts obtained from the raw and composite flour samples were studied for their radical scavenging capacities. Natural antioxidants help increase the shelf life of food products without affecting nutritional or sensory qualities (Rajalakshmi and Narasimhan, \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1996\u003c/span\u003e). The DPPH radical scavenging activities of the raw flour and composite flour extracts are presented in Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e11\u003c/span\u003e. The DPPH radical scavenging activities of the raw flours (76.48\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;1.05 to 82.83\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.61%) were slightly greater than those of their composite flours (69.31\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;1.69 to 81.77\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.68%), but the differences were not significant.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe addition of acacia gum improved the functional properties of the final product. The addition of gums results in increased dietary fiber and decreased caloric value by diluting the moisture content (Rodge et al., \u003cspan class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2012\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e"},{"header":"4. CONCLUSION","content":"\u003cp\u003eThe results revealed that the blends of cereals, pulses and millet flour have good nutritional quality. The incorporation of legume flours into the formulation improved the protein quality considerably. Compared with those in the F1-AG and F2\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG groups, the protein content in the S1-AG and S2\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG groups was increased. Even though nutritional and functional properties have been studied, advanced examinations of the amino acid profile, protein and starch digestibility and mineral bioavailability of the product are mandatory for its commercial application.\u003c/p\u003e "},{"header":"DECLARATIONS","content":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eCRediT authorship contribution statement\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eHonganoor Puttananjaiah Mohankumari contributed to the design of the experiments and methodology of this study and wrote and reviewed the manuscript. Vadaguru Viswanath executed the experiments. All the authors have read and approved the final manuscript.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eDeclaration of competing interests\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAll the authors declare that they have no competing interests.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAvailability of Data\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe data will be made available upon request.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAcknowledgments\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe authors express sincere thanks to the Director, CSIR-Central Food Technological Research Institute, Mysore, India, for their constant encouragement and for providing the facility to carry out the work.\u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"REFERENCES","content":"\u003col\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eAbioye, V., Ade-Omowaye, B., Babarinde, G., Adesigbin, M., 2011. Chemical, physico-chemical and sensory properties of soy-plantain flour. \u003cem\u003eAfr. J. 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Assessment of functional properties of different flours. \u003cem\u003eAfr. j. agric. res\u003c/em\u003e. 8(38), 4849-4852.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eChandra, S., Singh, S., Kumari, D., 2015. Evaluation of functional properties of composite flours and sensorial attributes of composite flour biscuits. \u003cem\u003eJ. Food Sci. Technol\u003c/em\u003e. 52, 3681-3688.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eChandrasekara, A., Shahidi, F., 2010. Content of insoluble bound phenolics in millets and their contribution to antioxidant capacity. \u003cem\u003eJ Agric Food Chem.\u003c/em\u003e 58(11), 6706-6714.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eChau, C.F., Cheung, P.C.K., 1998. Functional properties of flours prepared from three Chinese indigenous legume seeds. Food Chem. 61, 429-433.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eChethan, S., Malleshi, N., 2007. Finger millet polyphenols: Optimization of extraction and the effect of pH on their stability. 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Chem\u003c/em\u003e. 36, 719-727.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ol\u003e"}],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":true,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":true,"hideJournal":true,"highlight":"","institution":"Central Food Technological Research Institute","isAcceptedByJournal":false,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":false,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":false,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true},"keywords":"Composite flour, Functional property, bioactive compounds, Food composition, Flour preparation, Antioxidant activity","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-4281813/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-4281813/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003cp\u003eThis study evaluated the nutritional and functional properties, bioactive compounds and scavenging activities of composite flour (rice, ragi, cowpea and black gram) formulations with and without acacia gum. Bioactive components such as total phenolic content, total flavonoid content and antioxidant activity were also analyzed. The protein and ash contents were greater in F\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e-AG, at 15.47\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.76% and 2.69\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.25%, respectively. F\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e-AG had the highest WAC (%) of 135.74\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;1.80, followed by F\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e-AG with 119.19\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;1.01. F\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG had the highest oil absorption capacity (66.71\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.82%), followed by F\u003csub\u003e1\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG (65.90\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;1.20%). The foam capacity of the different flour formulations ranged from 11.47 to 15.20%. The FC of F\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG (15.20%) was found to be high among the other formulations. FS was most common in F\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e-AG (88.55%), followed by F\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG (80.58%). The highest EA was observed for F\u003csub\u003e1\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG (42.05%), followed by F\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG (40.58%). The highest ES was observed for F\u003csub\u003e2\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG (59.18%), followed by F\u003csub\u003e3\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG (50.18%). PAC was greater in the composite flour (6.40\u0026ndash;6.70 mg/g) than in the individual flours (0.47\u0026ndash;5.49 mg/g). Compared with those in the F1-AG and F2\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG groups, the protein content in the S1-AG and S2\u0026thinsp;+\u0026thinsp;AG groups was increased. The main objective of this study was to enhance the nutritional quality and functional properties of the product prepared from composite flour. The results also suggested that blending cereals and pulse flour could enhance the functional properties and bioactive components of composite flours.\u003c/p\u003e","manuscriptTitle":"Implication of acacia gum for cereal-legume-millet-based composite flour: Nutritional and functional attributes and biological activity","msid":"","msnumber":"","nonDraftVersions":[{"code":1,"date":"2024-04-19 18:39:21","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-4281813/v1","editorialEvents":[{"type":"communityComments","content":0}],"status":"published","journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true}}],"origin":"","ownerIdentity":"fcea9466-ea67-4823-93ed-281cdff95e0c","owner":[],"postedDate":"April 19th, 2024","published":true,"recentEditorialEvents":[],"rejectedJournal":[],"revision":"","amendment":"","status":"posted","subjectAreas":[{"id":30829144,"name":"Food Science \u0026 Technology"}],"tags":[],"updatedAt":"2024-04-19T18:39:21+00:00","versionOfRecord":[],"versionCreatedAt":"2024-04-19 18:39:21","video":"","vorDoi":"","vorDoiUrl":"","workflowStages":[]},"version":"v1","identity":"rs-4281813","journalConfig":"researchsquare"},"__N_SSP":true},"page":"/article/[identity]/[[...version]]","query":{"redirect":"/article/rs-4281813","identity":"rs-4281813","version":["v1"]},"buildId":"8U1c8b4HqxoKbykW_rLl7","isFallback":false,"isExperimentalCompile":false,"dynamicIds":[84888],"gssp":true,"scriptLoader":[]}