Cereal Chem 55:722 - 731.  |  VIEW ARTICLE
Biochemical and Nutritional Significance of Wheat Albumin Inhibitors of Alpha-Amylase.

V. Silano. Copyright 1978 by the American Association of Cereal Chemists, Inc. 

Molecular properties of alpha-amylase albumin inhibitors from the kernel of polyploid wheats and phylogenetically related Triticinae species as well as those of inhibited alpha-amylases are described. Main biochemical features of amylase-albumin inhibitor systems that offer a unique model of specific and reversible protein-protein interaction are also outlined. Moreover, nutritional significance under some circumstances of these naturally occurring inhibitors is discussed in relation to their active presence in foods. The possibility of using albumin inhibitors of alpha-amylase as therapeutic agents in persons with diabetes, obesity, and related diseases is critically evaluated.